Scorned
by Addicted2fanfics
Summary: The night in the forest Edward attempts to break up with Bella. Everything was going according to plan,until after a series of unfortunate events Bella is left alone and dying. Or is she?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"_Edward wait_", My mind was racing back and forth with the decision I was about to make. _"Edward please don't do this."_

Bella knew, she knew as soon as she looked up at me through dark pooling eyes that this would be the last time she would ever see me, in this life, in her life again. I wanted to scream, I wanted to die, I wanted more then anything to take back all that I had said and all that I was about to.

"_I'm coming too_" she said. She tried to make it sound like a command but it came out more so as a question. I couldn't take any more of this, my mind was already set. I had to leave, to leave her, this was not what I ever thought I would have to do, but her life was too fragile, too important to jeopardise. I was no good for her and it was only a matter of time before something would happen beyond mine and Alice's powers, we would fail her and I couldn't live with that, I couldn't continue living out this _"life" _(if that's what you'd call it) knowing I was her demise.

"_You're just not good for me" (lie), "Not good enough you mean"_. Every fiber of my being was twisting and tearing as I tried to keep my composure as I told her: my _heart_, my _life _that was standing before me that I no longer wanted it, no longer needed it's steady drumming to fill my body with life. I was going to be sick if I didn't end this soon. "Bella, I promise you that after today I will never bother you again" Every bone in my body was screaming at me now to stop, to reconsider. "I'm sorry …… Goodbye".

There it was, it was done. I tore my very own beating heart from my body and am now forced to watch it bleed. I had to leave, I had to leave now before I lost all resolve. "Edward wait!" she cried as I turned away from her. My entire body screaming at me to turn back, to take her in my arms, to tell her I how much I loved her, to keep her with me for the rest of time, but I couldn't. I had to steady the course, it was what was best, for her. I knew this to be true and one day so would she. One day she would look back on this moment and know I had made the right decision, for her.

One day she--- At that very moment Bella reached out for me quicker then I had anticipated, she completely caught me of guard as she grabbed on to my arm. Quickly I tried to shrug her off as though she were nothing, just so I could get my point across to her. That we were now over. Unfortunately for us both I moved quicker then I intended. As my hand slide from her grasp, her body flexed in response, and in less time then it takes to snap ones fingers; my razor sharp nails glided across her arm like a skates on ice.

In that instant time stood still. Bella gasped and then cried out in pain, pain that I had inflicted on her. She pulled back her arm and quickly wrapped her hand around the four sharp lines drawn across her flesh in a failing attempt to stop her blood from flowing…….. Oh dear God….. Flowing down her arm. My eye's continually focused, then unfocused as a steady drumming sound that had once pulsed through my veins all those years ago began to beat again. It was all I could hear as I stared entranced by the sight before my eyes.

Bella's blood was now literally on my hand.

Bella was speaking now, but I couldn't hear a single word that she said. All I could hear was a drumming sound that grew in volume and intensity. I very quickly wondered if in fact it were my own still cold heart come back to life to haunt me, but as I tore my gaze from my hand to look back at Bella I quickly realized that it was hers.

_Her_ heart beating faster then the wings of a humming bird; _her_ heart that was pumping her blood down her arm; _her_ heart that had very foolishly trusted me, _loved_ me. I stood there cemented in place as I looked up now to her eyes, her beautiful trusting brown eyes, "Edward please…."

And that's all it took, all it took to wake the sleeping dragon that lay beneath. My once golden eyes had now turned black, blacker then the starless night that had rise above.

Before the next beat of her heart I lunged.

_This can't be happening, this can't really be happening, _I said to myself as I stood before Edward. But it was, the minute I saw him in my drive way I knew what was coming, and knew I could do nothing to stop it, to stop him. But I had to try, I had to try to fight for us even if he wouldn't. "Edward wait…" He was talking to me, talking so fast I couldn't even catch my breath. So fast that I could only focus on the sound of my now breaking heart to tell him no, to tell him to stop, so he wouldn't leave me.

I could feel the contents of my stomach slowly beginning to rise up in my throat, it took every once of strength in me to not throw up, to not break down and collapse on the floor of the forest. Wait, what? Did he really ask me to promise him to not do anything reckless? For Charlie's sake? Are you kidding me?! "_Good bye." _My head was now spinning. I could feel myself starting to hyperventilate. This is real, this was real. Edward is going to leave me, and never come back?! I choked back a sob just long enough to call out to him, to try one last attempt to keep him here with me before it was too late. "Edward wait!" it came out more as a strangled sob, at that very moment I could no longer keep it all in, I began to cry.

As he turned away from me I knew this was it, if I didn't react quickly he would be gone in the blink of an eye. I reached out for him just as he was about to take his first step away from me, the first of many. What happened next in a million years I would have never imagined, but it did.

I gasped not from the pain per say but from the look on his face when he turned back to face me. If it weren't for the warm tricking sensation running down my arm I wouldn't have realized that Edward nails had just sliced through my arm, all I could focus on was stopping him from leaving. His eyes very quickly trailed down to my arm. As they did I instinctively grabbed my arm, trying to cover up the evidence of what I knew would send him over the edge and far away from me. As if it wasn't bad enough what happened with Jasper a few days prior, then this surly would cement him in his decision to leave.

"Edward, it's, it's ok, it's not your fault, you didn't mean to, I know you didn't mean to. It's just a scratch really it's nothing , I'll be fine". He didn't move, not an inch he just stood there transfixed on my arm, as I spoke to him. Oh thank God he didn't leave, there's still time to convince him to stay, to stay with me, to love me. That I am good enough for him, for all of them. If only I could convince myself that first.

"Edward please….." I'll beg, if that's what it takes I'll beg like a dog, anything. I'll do anything to keep him from leaving me. He then very slowly began to lift his gaze from my arm up to my face. Oh thank God _he can hear me_, I sighed to myself as our eyes met. "Edward, it's--"

It felt as though the air literally was dragged from my lungs. His eyes, Oh my God his eyes, when they finally met mine were no longer his. Edward's body stood before me but I knew he was no longer there. With out so much as a flinch he very slowly brought his hand up to his mouth and one by one licked my blood off of his fingers.

In the back of my mind I could hear this tiny pleading voice telling me to run, to run as fast as my legs would take me, and with out consciously thinking about it I took one step backwards. It was at that moment that the heel of my foot came in contact with a twig on the ground, before the twig stopped crying out in pain from the weight of my foot Edward lunged.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The force of his impact sent us hurtling backwards through the air, various shades of green and brown whirled past us, until finally we landed with a loud 'Thunk'. I was lying beneath Edward and had realized my head was what had made the noise as it came into contact with the base of a western red cedar. I almost blacked out completely, and was literally seeing stars for a moment until I refocused my attention on what was on top of me, and very quickly remembered how it got there.

"Edward…Edward…please" was all I could manage to say as he looked down at me with an incredibly evil sneer.

* * *

With a snap of a twig I was sailing through the air, all I could hear was the Dragon's loud roar. I grabbed her by her shoulders and we were sent flying through the air before tumbling towards the ground. I heard her head make contact with the tree and hoped it was enough force to have killed, her but it wasn't. She slumped over for a moment and then turned her head to face me, all I could see was red. All I could hear was a fierce growl ripping through my body as my mouth dripped with my venom.

One word, that's all it took 'Please'.

There it was laying beneath me _begging_ me to take what was mine. To take what I have been denying myself for over a year. Begging me to take what I had been waiting for, for over eighty long years. To have, to take, to tear, and to drain.

She must have been talking the entire time I stood there staring at my hand, but I didn't hear a word that was said, all I could hear was the most beautiful song emanating from my hand. A quiet beautiful melody that sounded like a thousand tiny bells and chimes blowing in the breeze, slowly rose enveloping me in a serene euphoria. As I brought my hand up to my mouth I nearly fell over when the scent, _her_ scent filled my mind. It was indescribable. Nothing, no flower, no spice, no fruit was as sweet and pungent as this.

The moment my lips touched her blood it was over. There was only one thing left to do now that I no longer had control over the beast within and what he was about to do.

* * *

"Edward… please…..please…" But I knew when he looked at me, that it, my words, my love, my plea was falling on deaf ears. And I knew that there was no going back for him or I. Even if I wanted to there was no escape, his body was now coiling around mine tightly like a python, constricting my movements and breath. I was going to die and Edward was going to kill me.

In that moment everything was clear, and I was ok, because deep down I knew I would never survive with out him. That it would only be a matter of time before I would find a way to fade into nothing, even if by my own hands. I knew it was coming soon. His body was as hard as stone, jagged and sharp cutting into me and the only sounds surrounding us were his deafening snarls and growls. His teeth were gleaming white underneath the tiny amount of light radiating from the moon.

18 years I had wondered how or why anyone could or would fall in love, my parents were a prime example that _Love_, true love, soul mates were as fictional as characters in a book. That the only thing real was the air in which we breathe. So when I moved to forks I never thought in a matter of minutes, hours, days, I would have fallen irreverently, impossibly, completely in love with Edward, no matter what or who he is. I knew the first time I set eyes on him that he and I were meant to find each other in this life time. The only thing I ever questioned was how many past life times we tried looking for one another and had failed.

So with my final thought I looked up at him and managed to squeeze out one last declaration "I…..Love….you…". And as my words faded I nodded. I nodded for him to take me, as his own. At that moment, when his mouth descended upon me, darkness crept over my body and pulled me under.

* * *

I didn't hear a word, just saw her nod. That's all I needed, all I wanted. Permission. Permission to stop crawling underneath my skin. Every. Single. Day. And take what I was meant to have. I tightened my grip around her body and thrust my mouth to her neck in one fluid motion sinking my teeth into her soft flesh. In an instant my mouth was filling with her blood.

Her blood.

Nothing I have ever tasted in this life (or the last), ever tasted like this. This was a pure undiluted taste of heaven right here in my own personal hell.

The drumming inside my head, inside her body began to slow, starting to fade into the back ground noises of the forest, the wind rustling the leaves, the chirping of various insects and animals, and a slow calming lull came over my body. My hunger started to fade and I slowly started to come back down to reality, from where ever it was that I had retreated to.

The last word from Bella's lips was "Love."

**Authours note:**

Hehehe... I get to write an Author's note! Ok (swipes forehead) I've got that out of my system now.

So, what did you think? Doesn't look like the happy ending we are all accoustomed to right?

I have no Beta and have edited this thing 6 times now, if anyone is interested in helping out a newbie I'd appreciate it!


	3. Chapter 3

**Just in case you didn't already know: I don't own Twilight SM does. **

**But I do own a copy of it ;)**

***more at the bottom***

**Chapter three**

Oh no, My God! NO! Oh Bella! Oh God! Oh no! I screamed aloud as I came to.

"What have I done?"

I flew off of her limp body with such a force that the Hundred year old Sitka Spruce I collided with split in two. I just sat there heaving heavily as if I were out of breath. My worst nightmare finally came to life. I killed Bella. Me. Not James, not Victoria, not Laurent, a stupid Van, fate or circumstance, not even my brother, Me.

It felt as though my head were spinning uncontrollably, my entire world was now spiralling out of control. I could no longer bare the sight before me and purged my greatest sin from my body. I stood up slowly and took a tentative step towards her, but stopped. I couldn't handle it anymore. I had to leave. Leave her behind where she would be safe, safe away from me. Before I knew it I was half way home screaming for my father.

Carlise and the others met me just past the line of trees separating the house from the forest. "Edward, what is it, what's happened?" he asked as he approached me. He froze, and then stumbled backwards when his golden eyes were greeted with my now glowing red ones. "Edward, Oh no…..". If it were at all possible Esme would have cried when she realized what I had just done. No one needed to say it or even ask it, everyone knew.

Everyone knew I killed Bella.

* * *

A cold darkness crept over my body, death was taking me. Taking me away from Forks, my Father, my Mother and most of all, Edward. It was only a matter of time now, soon it would all be over. I just hoped that Edward and the rest of the Cullen's wouldn't be implicated. Yes, as crazy as it sounds I wanted nothing more then for Edward to be safe. It was almost comforting to know that some where out there he lived on. _Almost, _I said until a weak burning sensation started to ripple through my body.

At first the sensation was light and tingly, but before I could get a handle on what was happening my entire body ignited into a ragging inferno, engulfing me into pain I never new existed. Wave after wave it racked through out my body, my mind, my _soul. _If I could see anything, I would swear there were angry flames covering my entire body. I began to cry, _sob really_, begging to die. Loudly, repeatedly but it was hopeless. No one was there to hear my cries. No one was there to help me, save me, protect me.

No one was there.

Edward was gone.

_Edward was gone. _

Edward had left me to die.

Alone.

This knowledge in itself was worse then dying, worse then hell. This was worse then losing him. It was now abundantly clear: he no longer loved me; probably never did, and was never going to. Jesus, I couldn't even have that even in death; the comfort knowing that I still had his love.

Maybe I should have listened to him when he told me to stay away from him all those months ago. Maybe I should have taken him seriously. Maybe I should have listened to him and ran back to my Mother and Phil, to play the part of the '_happy_' third wheel. As if a light bulb went off some where; a bone chilling realization came over me: this wasn't death. I would never have such a luxury. Ironic as it was I becoming what I had wanted all along, just not how I had always envisioned.

I was becoming a Vampire.

With the next wave of heat that rolled over of my body something else was brought along with it, Anger.

A rustling sound behind me broke me from my train of thought. Branches bending and twigs were snapping under an unknown weight. _Probably some animal looking to finish me off_. Little did they know what they would soon be feasting their eyes on. I could hear it, (what ever _it_ was) was moving closer towards me now. Then rising out of the darkness I heard it, a familiar voice calling out my name that made me sigh with such longing and relief……..

_Jacob_ I thought to my self just as another wave of torment ripped through my body.

**Author's Note:**

Ok, I know it's pretty short. But I wanted to "tear the bandaid off" as quickly and painlessly as possible. This should be the shortest Chap.(I hope). This chapter was harder to write then the last two, I won't bore you with the amount of times I re-edited it.

I wanted it to be as believable as possible without coming across as cold or gorry, or even worse: chessy and overly dramatic.

Now that we've got that all over and done with, we can get on with the really good stuff. :)

Let me know what you think....... update will be next week.

Happy Friday!

*edit #2 since posting- nothing big, misplaced name is all*


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything Twilight, _but would pay good money for a certain Vampire._

_** Sorry that the POV weren't more clear. I had them seperated but they aren't showing up on my page when you read them.***_

**Chapter 4**

_**Edward:**_

"I told you this is what would happen!" Rosalie spat at me once we were all standing inside the living room. Leave it to her to rub it in my face while I was at my absolute lowest. _Bitch_. "Rosalie!" shout Esme from across the room. "That is enough!" A wide eyed Rosalie very quickly found a plank in the floor overly fascinating and spent the next several minutes studying it. It didn't happen often; really I can only think of but a handful of times over the years that Esme _had_ lost her composure and became angry with any of us, and right now she was bordering irate. For several minutes everyone was silent. The only sound floating through the air was the chiming of an antique grandfather clock at the end of the hall that Esme and Carlise had picked up several years ago from an old Inn Keeper while vacationing in Durham County in England.

"I was just --" Rosalie started, breaking her own self imposed 10 minute time out. "Why don't you and Emmett start packing your things… we'll be leaving sooner then originally planned." Carlisle interrupted before things could get heated again while pinching the bridge of his nose . Emmett laced his fingers through Rosalie's and gave a comforting squeeze. "Is there anything else we can do to help Carlise?" He asked, "Yes" Carlise said, "We should probably call Alice and Jasper and let them know what has ha---". Carlise was cut off mid sentence when an eerily haunting tune rang out from Esme's cell phone. "Yes….. yes Alice, we know. Yes, I know…… Alice, Alice please, it's not your fault…..No…… Alice it's not. Sweetie, please don't cry….." the last part Esme said was almost a whisper. When Esme lifted her eyes to Carlise's she gave a knowing nod and quietly left the room, taking her conversation along with her.

I felt a huge lump in my throat and croaked out to Carilse as he gave me a sympathetic smile, "No don't…. I don't deserve …. Look at what I've done." "Edward…." he started before I cut him off. "No don't…….. h-how could I?" "I-I tried to leave her to keep her safe, from me and…. It just all went so terribly wrong." I spoke before hanging my head in my hands. "Edward, I can only imagine--" He stopped short, shook his head and then rephrased what he was trying to say to me: "No, no I am not even going tryto trivialize your feelings right now by telling you that 'I _understand'_ what you have just gone through. It would be ignorant of me if I did." He said as he walked towards me. "Edward I am so, so sorry what you have just had to go through." He continued, "It's never easy for _us_ to just walk around like _normal_ people the way we do on a daily basis. All of us struggle with it." He continued to speak while he sat next to me on the sofa, taking my hands in his. I looked up to met his eyes and was surprised to see that there was no sign of anger or disappointment in them. Just empathy and love. "We've all seen each other through our hardships together as a family, and we will continue to do so." If I ever even managed to become half the man my father is I would be truly blessed I thought to myself. All I could muster was a nod as I looked back down at our hands joined together.

_**Jacob:**_

_Bella?! Oh my God what happened?! _I was not at all prepared for the sight before me. On my way home that night from _the camp_I came across the most horrific sight of my life. Bella, _my_ Bella was a crumpled mess on the ground. Hot salty tears started to fall down my face as I stared at her in disbelief. I thought for sure she was dead , that was until she moaned and I saw her chest rise and fall very slowly and shallowly. I rushed to her side and called out her name, her eyes flickered opened and she looked at me some what if barely at all .

I didn't think, I just acted. As carefully as I could manage I lifted Bella up into my arms and ran all the way back to La Push, it was closer then trying to get her to the Hospital in Forks. My father and the others would know what to do, they would be able to stabilize her before the ambulance came. Before we got her to the Hospital. That was at least was I tried to convince myself.

When I broke through the line of trees into the clearing the others were already waiting for me, all of them…. _How did they_---

"Jacob!" yelled my father as they came into view. "Dad, it's Bella. She's hurt, hurt bad. You've gotta help, please." "Come, come quickly". He called out. The group rushed to my side and helped me the rest of the way to our house with Bella. Once inside our tiny house surrounded by every member of our Tribal council and them some, my father and Sam Uley (_What the hell was he doing here?!) _took Bella from my arms and laid her out on our kitchen table.

I've never liked Sam, everyone that fell into his stupid group followed him around like lost puppies. Whenever I had an unsettling feeling that I was being watched he was never too far away. Always, always staring at me; with that look on his, like he was _waiting_ for me to have some epiphany or something. _Creepy as shit I tell you_. What about? I don't know, and really didn't want to.

"Where did you find her?!" Harry Clearwater asked as he approached the table. Geez, I guess it really _is_ a council meeting tonight. Just about every member was here in our kitchen staring at me with some look, a look that I couldn't quite dissect, they then adverted their eyes back to Bella and looked as if they were all holding their breath waiting for something major to happen. "I found her about five miles in." I said out of breath. "Did you see anything else while you were out there son?" my father asked. "No, I was just heading back home along one of the trails and something caught my eye….. it was Bella. It's, it's bad isn't it? She's lost so much blood Dad. Is she going to make it?" When I asked, my father and Harry both looked up at each other from across the table, and then back down at the table in silence. It was then that I realized how much blood Bella had lost, and how much of her blood was on me. My shirt, arms and top half of my jeans were soaked through with her blood. When I realized this, and looked back at Bella's lifeless body I ran into the bathroom and threw up.

When I returned to the kitchen Sue Clearwater was standing in the door way, put her hand around my shoulder and gave me a small hug. I really missed my Mother more then anything right now. The others were all speaking in hushed quiet tones and whispers, when I approached the table Old Quil was bent over Bella's head and gently pulling open one of her eye lids. When he did this the others all gasped and jumped away from the table sharply.

"Oh my God is she…. is she…. Dad is Bella dead?!" My voice cracked at the end of my sentence. My father looked over at me before slowly turning his gaze back to Bella. "There's only one thing that we can do now" he said while looking at Harry. Harry and Old Quil both nodded their heads while staring at the floor, "We have to destroy her before it's to late." "WHAT!!!!" I screamed, "Dad what are you talking about? Shouldn't you call an Ambulance? Shouldn't you call Charlie?" What do you mean _'destroy her'_? "What the fuck does that even mean?!" "What are you doing!" I cried at him. Sam came over to me then and put his hand on my shoulder: "Jacob, you don't understand, but this is for the best…" he trailed off before I slapped his hand from my body. "DON'T you touch me, DON'T you EVER touch me!" I spat at him with such fury that my whole body trembled. A wide eyed Sam stepped away from me. "Dad please, don't do this, maybe there's still time, maybe if we get her to a hospital the doctors can fix her" I pleaded. Begged.

"Jacob" my father spoke softly. "Jacob, Bella as you know her, is already gone. But something else is happening to her now, and we need to act quickly….." "What, Dad you can't! You… you can't possibly be serious, y-you just can't!"

"Jacob….." he said more firmly while wrapping his arm around my shoulders as he lead me out of the kitchen. I turned my face to look back at Bella lying on top of my table one last time before returning my attention to my father.

"Jacob do you remember any of the Quileute legends your grand father and I used to tell you when you were a boy on camping trips?"

**

* * *

****Author's note (i) : **Unlike in the book, Bella and Jake's relationship is already developed in this story as the chapter begins. He just hasn't discovered the world of Werewolves and Vampires yet, or how he fits into it.

Time Line wise: He finds Bella within 2 hours of the attack.

Oh, and Billy isn't in a wheel chair in this fic.

**Author's note (ii) :**

The grand father clock in the Cullen house is based on a real clock that's story inspired the 1876 song "My Grand Father's Clock" by Henry Clay Work.

It was just dumb luck that I stumbled across it's story. I was looking for a grandfather clock from around the early 19th century to add into the story and then came across it. _And giggled like a school girl. _

If you google wikipedia, the lyrics to the song they are pretty fitting I think. Esme's ring tone is the song btw.

My_Grandfather's_Clock

Longcase_clock

Sorry for the long A/N, Let me know what you think.


	5. Chapter 5

***As always I don't own, I just imagine. **

**A/N the bottom**

**Chapter 5 **

**Jacob**

I sat in the living room for hours still digesting what my father had just told me. I'm not sure what I felt: shock, disbelief, denial, numbness. What ever it was I felt, no matter how great, I just couldn't get over the fact that by the end of the day my father and the rest of our tribal leaders along with the tribal leaders of the Makah's and the Hoh's were for the first time in over 100 years, joining together to destroy a Vampire. _Vampire. _

I thought they only existed in fictional novels and movies on T.V. I knew the first time I laid eyes on Edward Cullen that something was very strange and different about him, about all of them. But I would never have thought it would be this. Obviously the treaty was now broken; a Cullen had bitten and tried to kill a human. It looked as though a war was on the horizon. Quil and Embry returned from scouting out at the Cullen's house around six in the morning, and told us that they were nowhere to be found. The cowards had fled the scene of the crime, go figure. I wondered which one of them it was, surly it had to be Edward, it only made sense. He had been_ seducing _Bella for over a year now, like a cat playing around with a mouse just before it ate it. Although…. his brother, the other pasty looking guy; you know the one with the shaggy hair whom constantly looked as though he was sucking on a lemon, _yeah him_. I wouldn't put it past him either.

At 6:30 a.m. Charlie had issued a formal missing persons report on Bella. When he came home from work that evening and saw her truck in the driveway he figured she was inside cooking or doing her homework as usual, when he realized he was alone he assumed she must be out with _him _or some of her other friends. At nine p.m. when she hadn't called or come home yet he called around to the few friends he knew of. No one had seen or heard from her since she left school around three o'clock that afternoon. He tried the Cullen's but found the line was disconnected. When he tried to contact Carlise at the hospital he was surprised to hear that Dr. Carlise had resigned his position and relocated his entire family to Ketchikan, Alaska. Bella hadn't mentioned this, and he wondered if she even knew; or if she had run away with them.

By 10:30 pm Charlie started to look for her himself. He drove around Forks checking out the normal hang outs for the local youth and at 11:30 p.m. went into the precinct and asked a few of the guys to help him check the woods by his house. The four of them fanned out through the woods trying to see if they could find her themselves. At 1 a.m. Charlie began to panic. At 5:30 a.m. he started to file the appropriate paper work and had 10 police officers and 4 neighbours combing through the woods trying to locate his daughter. By 6:30 a.m. the search party had already covered two square miles on their own to no avail. He called my Dad and asked for the Tribe to help in the search. Which wasn't surprising at all as he and my Dad had been friends since they were in diapers and he practically grew up on the Reez himself. Charlie knew that no one knew the area better then we did.

My Father of course said "yes" how could he not it was his best friends daughter right? And he had to keep the whole Werewolve/ Vampire conspiracy-thing under wraps. That _unfortunately_ meant that the "ceremony" that was supposed to take place at noon would now have to wait until after dusk. It was already twelve hours since Bella had been bitten, there was only thirty-six hours left before the change was complete. "Jacob" my father called breaking me from my train of thought, "We are about to go join the search party, I'll tell Charlie that you were …. too upset to come with us". I slowly nodded my head not looking up at him. As he headed towards the door he paused for a moment then turned back to face me and said so quietly that it was almost a whisper "I'm sorry Jacob………. I- I know that Bella was…..special to you". He gave me a grim smile and then headed back towards his pick up and started down the road with the others. As I looked up at the clock I realized that it was now 8 a.m., I now had less then ten hours to get Bella out of here, and I'd better move fast.

By 9:09 a.m. I had everything that I thought I'd need to bring with me. I scribbled a note to my father telling him not to worry: "I knew what I was doing". _Yeah right. _I felt bad, I knew this was going to cause a huge uproar within the three tribes but there was nothing I could do; my back was literally up against a wall. I couldn't allow them to do anything to Bella- just no way. It wasn't even as though any of this was her fault to begin with. I mean, I some how doubt she looked at the leech and said: "Please, please scumbag parasite eat me!". _I could kill that fucker_ I thought to myself as I threw on my coat. I left through the door in the kitchen that lead to the backyard, we had a couple old sheds out there and on the other side of the house was the garage that Dad and I tinkered on cars and dirt bikes together.I felt worse about my Dad he's going to be really disappointed in me, I hope he'll forgive and maybe even understand why I had to do this one day. I mean seriously it's Bella, she wouldn't be anything like _them _any how. I'm certain of it. I looked around the yard scanning the tree line in behind the sheds, to make sure no one was wandering around watching the house _(watching me) _before I closed the door behind me. I silently made my way across the yard to the shed the only sound being the grass crunching under my feet and the wind blowing through the trees. It was over cast today which wasn't unusual for the area, but it was eerily dark and quiet even kind of muggy which _is_ weird for the end of September, _must be a storm coming in off the coast _I thought, and if that were the case I really needed to get moving before it touched land. We had quite a ways to go before we got to the camp and a storm at sea would not make for a fun trip. One last glance around the yard and I slowly opened the door to the shed that housed Bella and I was in.

It was mostly dark except for where tiny holes where the knots in the wooden walls widened over the years, allowed streams of light to flow into the darkened space. Specks of dust were sparkling in the air around me as I walked over to the bench that Bella was laid out on. I stepped towards her and was instantly taken aback at the sight before me, as if she couldn't possibly look any worse I thought to myself, she did. Her limbs were still unnaturally set, you could tell that there were several broken bones when I first found her last night but now her skin was covered almost head to toe in deep blue/ black bruising and because of that she also appeared quite swollen, her face though, was surprisingly untouched except for a large bump on the back of her head. Wow, what a bastard he is indeed. He didn't even have the balls to face her head on when he attacked her, he hit her from behind so she wouldn't see it coming, didn't even give her a chance to defend herself. Oh if there is a way, I'll find it, and when I do he will pay.

I returned my thoughts and attention to Bella, as bad as she looked it was still her and if you blocked your mind from the rest of her battered body and focused solely on her face she still was just as beautiful as always and looked peaceful, like the way she should look if she were in fact just dead and not about to become a Vampire. This shit was just to weird to even comprehend I thought to myself while shaking my head. I wonder if everything else is true: Vampires & Werewolves (obviously); Witches & Warlocks?; Angels & Demons? Was everything true? What else would we come across in our lives? What was still yet to come?

Very carefully I bent over Bella and cradled her body in my arms, she was so tiny, which would make the trek through the woods so much quicker Not that it mattered, at 15 I was still bigger then every other guy in my class and bigger then most of the guys in the senior class in my school too. Here I thought it was just dump luck or repressive genes, this was of course before Dad explained what happened to the different tribe members when Vampires started to settle into the area. I slowly opened the door and looked out at the tree line again, only 50 yards away. I would soon be in the cover of the forest. I convinced myself that the hardest part of my plan would be getting Bella to the tree line, soon enough I would be sadly mistaken.

By noon we finally reached the shore line, it took longer then normal to get here because we had to stay off of the main trails and a few times we even had to veer off course to avoid the areas I knew the search party would be looking. I set Bella on the grass beside the beach and quickly went to retrieve the old canoe that was hidden behind the old fallen trees. Years ago, after my mom had died I used to go hiking alone a lot to get my mind off of things. It was hard being in the house at times, sometimes everything would be fine and then you'd remember something you were supposed to tell her and with out thinking would call out "Mom", and then an awkward silence would fill the house. My sister would stifle a sob and my Dad would look like someone had just stabbed him in the heart, again. And so as you can guess I spent a lot of time wondering around, seeing where the different trails led and tried my hardest to shut out the world in which I lived.

I first came across the canoe when I was twelve and it very quickly became my favourite hiding place if you will, not too long after I discovered why it was on the shore. About seventeen miles off the coast of La Push was a tiny island: Destruction Island. It was uninhabited and had 2 small old abandoned camps on it. I kept this island to myself as though it were mine. I didn't tell anyone about it or the canoe, not even Quil and Embry, and they so would've loved it. No, this place was going to remain mine and mine alone. After I pulled the canoe out and loaded all of our stuff in it I went back to get Bella and placed her carefully inside, I began pushing it away from shore before hoping in it myself to start paddling. The sky had darkened considerably more since we left home, the water was darker almost black, no longer the clear blue calm that I was accustomed to. Normally it took two to three hours to paddle out to the island, today it took us close to six. Six long scary-as-shit hours.

Within 15 minutes of being on the water the winds picked up at an alarming rate and the rain started to fall down on us in sheets. The water became hard and choppy rocking the boat back and forth roughly. I thought for sure we would capsize a few times as the boat started being pushed and pulled by the swells forming in the water, we were pushed back towards shore more times then I care to count which was half the reason it took so long to get to land. I literally kissed the ground when we touched land. I quickly pulled the canoe up onto the shore and drug it across the beach and immediately tied it to a tree, just it case the storm got worse I didn't want to chance losing the canoe to the wind or tide. I threw my pack on, got Bella and quickly made my way through the foot trail up to the camp, ten minutes later we were inside safe and sound. I put Bella in the makeshift bed that was in the back room and went to start a fire in the main room. The wind began howling loudly outside the cabin as the storm intensified overhead, so much so that you could feel it's cold breeze being forced through the cracks in the walls. Tonight was going to be a ruff night, this I knew for sure.

After I got the fire started the room began to finally warm and it's glow from the fireplace illuminated throughout cabin some. I went to find the kerosene lanterns that hung above the old wood stove in the 'kitchen' and made sure they were still full, after that I stripped off my wet clothes and put on the extra dry set I hand in my nap sack. I pulled out the things I brought for Bella that I took from Rebecca's room and walked back into the room where she laid. She was now a _wet _crumpled mess and I figured now was as good a time as any to clean her up some. I grabbed the basin from under the bed and took it to the kitchen rinsing it out in the sink, it may not have _real_ plumbing but did have a hand pump hooked up to it thankfully. I returned with it and took out my Gerber useing the scissors to cut her clothing away from her body, I used a face cloth to clean her up as gently as I could (no, I didn't peak). After I got her cleaned up I took her shredded clothing and burnt them in the fire place, if she was going to in fact wake up I don't think she'd want to see what they looked like and be reminded what she was put through.

Bella was now wrapped up in the sleeping bag I had left here years ago, I reached into my bag again and pulled out a can of Chef Boyardee to heat up. After the day I had I was now hungry and thoroughly exhausted. I had done everything I could do, the rest was up to Bella and God.

All I had left to do was wait.

**Authors Note: **So there you have it Chapter 5. Sorry it took so long to update. Destruction Island is real and is about 17 miles south of La Push in case anyone was wondering. And I giggled out loud a little when I saw this weeks weather forcast for Ketchikan and saw that it was overcast and rainy for the entire week. I love google!

I've always had a soft spot for Jacob and had fun getting inside his head. He's really easy to write I find.

Thank you to everyone who's added Scorned to their update/ favorites list it's awesome to see that you all are interested in my little Fic and that it's been read over 500 times now. *Shout out* to Sunmire for always reviewing I appreciate the feed back more then you know.

Speaking of feedback, I love hearing everyone's thoughts/opinions about my story, and would love to hear some more, maybe even 5 for Chap. 5. I might even post a teaser of the next Chapter which will be Bella's POV if you do.

Any hoo, Happy Thursday!


	6. Chapter 6

*I do not own Twilight, just my own ramblings about it.*

Links to their songs can be found in my profile. And as always A/N at the bottom.

**Chapter 6**

**Bella**

_Dark_.

It was dark, that's all I can remember after the pain subsided. No light, no sound, no warmth, no cold just dark. The last day of my life is fuzzy. I remember Edward and trees; the scent of mint, pine and damp moss intertwined; a pain and sadness that hurt worse then my body ached. Words and emotions swirled together, the last thing I can remember was being alone and then not…… Jacob? Was he there too? I can almost make out his figure hovering above me. I'm not quite sure what was happening to me. But I am sure of this: Something is happening; something big. What, I just don't know.

I'm now standing alone in a field, _our_ field. There is no breeze or sounds, just deafening silence and an unnatural stillness. It's bright out but not sunny or warm, it's cool and dry.

It's Spring time I think, the field is covered in a blanket of thousands of tiny blue flowers. For-get-me-not's. _How ironic_, seeing as how I can't even remember how I got here to begin with. Edward has only taken me here one or two times at best, it's a long way from home and I'm not sure if I'll be able find my way back.

There seems to be a breeze passing through the trees in the distance. I can see a faint tremor moving through the leaves and branches, a quiet noise that I can't make out follows soon after. I stare curiously out into the distance wondering what was out there and what was soon to come.

Another tremor and rumbling sound of some kind pass over the trees again. It's still faint but audible, it sounded as though it was moving towards me.

Again.

This time was louder as though something heavy was dropped on the ground, as the tremor falls through the trees a small vibration passes under foot.

Again. _Closer_.

More of the forest dances in front of me as the sound now echo's after it. The vibrating from beneath the earth intensifies.

Again. _Louder yet_.

The entire forest surrounding the field trembles as far and wide as I can eye, the thundering sound trying desperately to catch it. The vibration pushes through the far end of the field creating the illusion of a blue wave to form. Birds flutter away to safety from their homes by the hundreds, as other woodland creatures scatter from the earth. As the next ripple tears through the trees and earth, the sky darkens and an angry wind picks up quickly, blowing now against my skin so hard that I have to shake the hair away from my face so I can see.

The next time it passed through the field, the noise that immediately followed was so loud that I had to cover my ears. This _storm_ was growing intense and dangerous I thought as I instinctively took a step backwards.

Again.

The sound matched the movement this time and I could see the ground shift and then split as if a lightening bolt has struck it. It was so strong that when it reached me, it lifted me from my spot as it expanded and contracted.

"Run." _Edward_.

His voice was crystal clear, if my eyes were closed I would have believed he was beside me.

"Run Now." he pleads.

Distracted by his voice I almost miss the sight of the trees simultaneously begin to fall from the earth unleashing a tidal wave of destruction barrelling down towards me, _fast_. With each of it's ripples everything I saw before me fell into oblivion.

As I gasped at the sight, the air instantly knocked out of my lungs and---

**"RUN!!!!!!" **he screamed.

I turned abruptly and ran for my life. Another terrifying thundering sound that resonated through the air was in perfect alignment with every beat of my heart. As everything came crashing down around me, I realized then that the sound echoing throughout the air that I was hearing was in fact my own heart.

The waves continue to chase after me as the world before me plummets from beneath my feet, I leap into the air before falling into nothingness.

**Jacob**

I don't remember when I fell asleep but I remember with certain clarity awakening to the sounds of Bella's screams, taking me by such surprise that I nearly fell out of the chair I had fallen asleep in. I ran over to her and looked down at her, she was thrashing about, clenching and unclenching her fingers as though she was trying to grab a hold of something. She continued to scream torturous, blood curdling screams as she twisted her body from side to side while arching her back from the bed. It looked as though she was being pulled from her body while trapped inside her own frightening nightmare. It was disturbing to say the least. When I felt for her pulse she was burning up with a fever so high that she was _literally_ hot to the touch. After several minutes I finally found her pulse and it was erratic and faint.

It was happening. Bella was changing.

I felt a lump form in my throat as I walked over to my chair and pulled it across the room up beside her bed and held onto her hand.

I wanted to leave several times but I didn't. I couldn't. It wouldn't have been right to have left her alone to die. _Like that_. So instead I sat and watched in horror as tears silently fell from my eyes, and for the first time in many years I prayed. I prayed that God would make this end as soon as possible.

During the next four hours she had successfully managed to kick her covers off of herself, no matter how many times I put them back on her. _Thirty-two times_. Just before dawn her breathing began to slow considerably and soon after became shallow and wheezy. Through my fingers on her wrist I could feel her pulse quicken one last time before it began to fall slowly from her body. One last breath and with the final beat of her heart, Bella was gone.

Her body relaxed and for the first time in a long time she looked peaceful. I kissed her on the forehead as I patted her hand that I still held in my own and then brought it up to my face. My tears were interrupted by the rapid fall of her body temperature. In less then a minute she went from almost burning to being _ice_ cold. I sat up abruptly and looked at the color drain from her face and then followed it's trail down her body to her toes.

_Now this part was just plain weird_. Her toes started to sparkle in the light now shining in from the window as it crawled up her body it grew and with it, what I can only describe as a _ripple_ rolled through her body and as it did Bella began to change.

At first it appeared that it was just mending her broken bones but when you looked closer you could see her body change slightly. Her lanky frame was being replaced by a softer more defined curvaceous figure. Her legs almost seemed to lengthen a bit too when they took shape. Her hips widened and waist narrowed. When it trailed up to her bust I adverted my eyes. I-I assume they too… you, know….. "_blossomed_". The only colour returning to her face was a deep shade of pink settling over her lips. Her hair smoothed out and her wavy curls became more prominent and shinny.

It looked like a better older version of herself, like what she _would have _looked like in a few years. Minus the sparkling-pasty skin of course.

As I looked back down at her face, her eyes opened and then focused on mine.

* * *

A/N: I know it's short but I hope you still liked it. Let me know what you think like it or hate it.

I **love** the RHCP's anyone irl knows this, and won't be surprised to see them here. The lyrics can be found on the you tube videos (in case you're curious).


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

_**Bella**_

Bright, blindingly bright.

My eyes struggled to focus against it as I blinked. Something moved in front of me. I tried to focus on it but everything was so blurry. I could hear it's every move, the sound of it's hair rustling against it's shirt, sound of air being sucked in and out through it's nose and the steady beat of it's heart. I mentally comprehended that I was somewhere very unfamiliar and that I was also not alone as I continued to regain my vision.

When a loud booming voice called out my name I practically jumped through the roof, in a split second I had leapt out of the bed and was trying to balance myself in the corner of the room. I put up my hand defensively as the room continued to swirl, willing my eyes to _just _focus. I could hear it's heart pound rapidly in it's chest now, it's breathing picked up and as it loudly swallowed a lump in it's throat before saying my name again: "Bella". Why can I hear it's heart beating? Why am I able to hear it's diaphragm moving? The chambers in it's heart pumping blood? Why can I hear all of this?

_What is wrong with me?_

"_Bella? I-It's ok. You're safe, you're with me." _I whipped my head around to face him, and nearly lost my balance in the process. Balancing myself now up against the night side, the room finely came to a rolling stop and I was able to focus on the anxious face of my best friend standing in front of me. " _Jacob?" _I reached out to touch his face with my right hand as my left guarded my chest. Before my hand made contact with Jacob's face I brought my left to rest on his right shoulder before he pulled me into a full on bear hug. "_Oh thank God Bells', you have no idea." _He looked intense as he pulled me away from him, looked me in the eyes and said: _"No idea." _and then he resumed his bear hug. We kind off swayed together for a minute before the sound of his heart became deafening: _right chamber, left chamber, deep breath in deep breath out. _Really getting weird now, why can I hear all of ----

"Jacob--" I said while pulling out of our embrace, but my train of thought was interrupted as a cool breeze blew in through the open window. It fascinated me as it traveled towards us singing a soft chime-like tune before gliding across my bare skin. Lots of bare skin. I stepped back and looked at Jacob and his big goofy grin plastered across his face, _"Jacob…." "Yeah Bells". _Speaking slowly through my now clenched teeth I asked rapidly:

"_What happened? _

"_Where are we?"_

"_How long have we been here?"_

_And lastly: "WHY THE HELL AM I NAKED?" _

The grin immediately fell from his face as he answered: "Oh, umm about that…." His gaze started to fall down my body before quickly retreating back up to my eyes (_but not before turning as red as his shirt though)._ "Umm, your clothes were uh, not in the greatest condition, and I uh, thought that umm it would be better if I uh, _got rid of them _before you woke up, because umm……Well any how, I brought you a change of clothes from Rebecca's room, I figured you'd want to get cleaned up and have fresh clothes after ever- soooo…" He turned his back to me and walked across the room to the dresser, where his nap sack was. He started to pull out some clothes and other things as he continued: "I figure _most_ of it should fit you, but that was before… I don't know about the umm…ya know…". Did he really just do the 'boob' gesture? My jaw dropped open.

"So the shower is in through ther-"

"Get out."

"And there's a towel already in the-"

"GET. out"

"So I'll be on the porch if you-" I threw the clock sitting on the night stand at his head missing only by an inch _because he ducked_.

"GET OUT!"

"Geez Bella, take it easy. I was only saying ----

"GET OUT! GET OUT! GET OUT!"

"Ok, Ok, you don't have to yell."

Jacob closed the door behind him, leaving me alone to exhale loudly. I carryied the soap and shampoo into the bathroom he brought for me rambling to myself that: _it's bad enough that I know that I wasn't blessed with….. ya know, but to have him point that out to me? For crying out loud they're not that_-- I dropped the bottles onto the floor as I met the reflection staring back at me. Had the mirror not been old, tarnished and chipped I could've sworn Jake was stocking up on naked chicks out here. _Was that really me? _It couldn't be, I must be drunk. Though I've never had a drink in all my life, well except for that one time that I mistakenly took a sip from Phil's coke before quickly spitting it back out two years ago. I stepped closer to get a better look at myself , "_I must be dreaming." _I said aloud as I touched my face. There is no way that was me. I- I, I was like-- Oh my God those are…! My jaw dropped for the second time as I took in my chest. Holy Hanna, That is not a B cup! Shell- shocked, I slowly looked over the rest of my body in the mirror, and then down at myself while twisting and turning so I could take in every angle. It was easy to see all the changes, some were subtle but still noticeable and others were blatantly obvious: defined waist, longer leaner legs and thighs, everything was firmer and more "womanly". How long had I been asleep? Was I like, in a coma or something? If so what am I doing here and where is Edward?

Edward.

The mere thought of his name sends me into near hysteria. I sat down on the toilet and covered my mouth with my hand waiting for silent tears to appear but they never did. Neither did other _automatic responses _that sitting on a toilet usually brings on. _Weird_. Who am I kidding everything is weird.

While showering I continued to ponder what all of this meant, everything before this morning was a blur. Why was everything so hyper sensitive? I could still hear Jacobs' heart pumping from the front porch on the other side of the house. I could hear the foam bubbling on top of the water at the beach, and the birds chirping off in the distance. I could hear all of this, everything around me, but I couldn't hear a single thing from myself? What could any of this possibly mean? I shut off the water closed my eyes and concentrated on only me. Silence. _No_. I placed my hand over my heart and felt nothing. Nothing but cold. hard. skin. _No,_ _it couldn't be? _I flew out of the shower and rubbed the steam off of the mirror and took a closer look at my eyes.

**"JACOB!"**

_**Edward**_

_(Flash backs in italics)_

It had been a few months since we _left Forks_. _I know, I just can't bring myself to say what really happened, aloud at least_. My every thought was consumed with memories of Bella. Every second of every day: Bella beside me in my car, Bella at sitting next to me at lunch, Bella in Biology for the first time, hiding behind her hair. _Strawberries_. Bella in my room. Asleep in her bed. Bella in our meadow. Our first kiss together. Our last. Although that night in the woods was only about twelve weeks ago it felt like an eternity. Every day since Bella died felt like an eternity. And every minute of every day was a living Hell.

_I sighed deeply as Carlise appeared at my door, "Edward" he said softly, I turned around to see Emmett standing behind him with his hands in his pockets, eyes fixed on the floor. "Edward, we need to.." we continued aloud as he thought silently to me that "it is time. We need to go and find Bella. We can't just leave her… There.. ." I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply hoping that when I opened them I would realize the entire night was a dream, a nightmare. But alas, when I opened them Carlise and Emmett still stood in my doorway waiting for me to led them out into the woods._

_It wasn't long before we were able to find the path I had taken home, about 40 minutes into our trek we were approaching the thicket of trees where I had run away from Bella. It's easier to say that I 'ran away' from her like a coward, then to admit that we were approaching the thicket of trees where I left her to die. "Are you sure?" "Yes I'm sure!" I said while pacing back and forth in front of the tree that she was previously underneath. "I don't understand Edward, it's dark out maybe we're in the wrong spot", "No, no we're not, I'm telling you she was right-" "Shhh" Emmett said silently, "Listen." The three of us froze in our spots as we very faintly heard voices calling out in the woods. "There's three of them (Carlise said) 50 yards away, we need to go-" I shook my head "No we have to find her, we- I can't leave her, I can't just let her--" "It's Charlie. Edward we have to go, no one can know you were out here". We could see the beams of their flash lights off in the distance scanning through the trees. "BELLA!" "BELLA!" "Edward, now. we have to go now!" "I can't, I-"_

I didn't have a chance to argue with them any further_, Emmett had grabbed me around the waist, slinging me over his massive shoulder and took off running full tilt back out of the woods. Carlise only but a step behind us. Once we got back to the house and Emmett put me down I tried to run past him but found myself flat on my back. Repeatedly. I tried with no avail for over three hours to get away from Emmett. I didn't even make it off the front porch. After I had exhausted myself, Carlise and Emmett helped me back inside the house. For the remainder of the night no one spoke, not a word. Not when they loaded the car, or when they put me into it. No one spoke a word the entire trip to Ketchikan, Alaska. __When we finally pulled up in the drive way we found Alice's yellow Porsche already waiting. _

_Tiny arms engulfed me before I could even get in through the door. Alice looked racked with guilt as she untwined her arms from around my waist. She stepped back and looked up at me through deep regretful eyes, "It's all my fault.. I should have seen it coming, but I didn't. Not until…" her voice fading away. "Alice.. it's not….. Ok?… It had nothing to do with you…". Everyone else was busy bustling past us quickly unloading the cars, unpacking boxes and generally just trying to steer clear of me. It was a long, tense, painfully quiet drive up here. __Esme came up from behind me and pointed to the stairs "Yours is the last on the left" she said while gently rubbing my back. I silently nodded and then continued through the hallway that led to the stairs, stopping briefly to pick up my bags before heading up to my 'new' room. When I turned around Jasper was standing in front of me. _

_It felt like the wind was knocked out of me (again) when I saw him. I was so many things right there in that moment: Angry, Sad, Relieved, Frustrated, Scared, Furious, Hopeful. I wanted to hate him so much I could taste it, but I knew no matter how much I tried I could never hate Jasper. Because no matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't blame him for what happened. I was the one who brought her into our dangerous world. I was the one who kept putting her life in danger not him. Jasper only reacted as he could, given the situation. We both stood there for a moment just staring at each other, neither knowing what to say or how to react. _

_Poor Jasper, you could tell this was eating him "alive", his eyes were heavily circled and dark, his skin had almost taken on a shade of grey and you could also tell he hadn't been hunting much. He just looked a mess. Like me. "Edward…" I looked up to find Jasper staring intently at me. "Edward…. What I did, there is just no excuse….. It's all my fault and I am so - so very sorry for what I did. I never meant to lose control like that I- I, I can't even begin to explain how much I hate myself for what I just put you through. And for what it did to …."_

_I put my hand up before he could finish that sentence. I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose inhaling deeply, when I exhaled I reopened them and if at all possible Jasper looked even worse. "Jasper…. I-I just can't right now. I know….. and we'll…but I just can't. I'm sorry". Jasper looked as if he had completely deflated right in front of me, his eyes fell to the floor and he slowly shook his head before moving aside to allow me to pass. When I made it to the landing I heard Alice comforting Jasper trying to soothe him. She was telling him that it would work out; he wasn't going to leave; no one blamed him or wanted him to leave; that I would forgive him, that she had seen it, and that in the end we would have a stronger-closer relationship. I kind of snorted to myself when she said this, I certainly couldn't see how we would be "closer" anytime in the near future, but rest assured my dear sweet sister silently reaffirmed for me that I: "Would in fact forgive Jasper, and it had better be soon"._

Carlise had received a phone call from Charlie three days later regarding Bella and had quite believably told him that Bella was not with us nor did he know her whereabouts and also that the night in question the Cullens were already half-way to Alaska and everyone could vouch for my whereabouts that night as well. He even offered to send him sworn affidavits from each member of his family. In the weeks that followed there were several minutes devoted to Bella's disappearance on the local evening news, even a few national stations aired her story. It always ended the same way, separate interviews of both Charlie and Rene begging for her safe return and several pleas from the Forks Police Force to call in "If you have any information to her whereabouts."

I spent the next month and a half alone in my room before Emmett and Carlise forced me out into the woods one night to feed. Alice and Rosalie had already gone ahead of us and when I wouldn't hunt of my own accord, Alice hand very _daintily (but forcibly) _dropped an eight - point buck at my feet as Rose _warned_ that they weren't opposed to force feeding me too. "Now be a _good boy _and drink".

For the first time in what seemed like a hundred years, I laughed.

**A/N: **Sorry it took so long for the update, four rounds of stomach flue in one household will put anyone off schedule I think. I'm already working on Chap. 8 so hopefully it'll be out by the weekend.

Oh and I really- really like reviews, good or bad, let me know what you think.

So review. Pretty please with a half-naked Edward on top.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: FYI, Edwards's time-line is a few months ahead of Bella's.

Oh, and I don't own.

**Chapter 8**

_**Bella**_

Jacob had come into the room just as I finished pulling on the black shirt he brought for me. He immediately turned his back to me and then apologized for not knocking before he came in. I was twisting my wet hair into a messy bun at the top of my head when I bombarded him with a million questions, one right after the other. Poor guy couldn't even get in a single word. I had pretty much figured out that I was a Vampire (_or that I had in fact completely lost my mind) _but how? How was I a Vampire and am now here with Jacob and not Edward? Where is Edward, what happened?

"Jacob, please I'm freaking out here, w-what happened?" "Am I really…" I asked shaking my head in disbelief.

"Yes Bella you are." "Are you sure? This is a bad dream right? You could just pinch me…." "Bells lets go outside, I think we should talk."

"No shit." I said as I followed him out of the cabin.

Jake had a bonfire going in the fire pit down by the beach, when I first stepped out side it was unreal, the light was literally blinding it felt for a few seconds like my eyes were burning. Jake gave me his ball cap and led me down to the beach and helped me sit. It was incredible, once the burning-blinding sensation had passed. Did you know that everything has a sound? Things you couldn't even imagine: like the light sparkling on top of the water, it has its own tune; the reeds rubbing together sing their own song; and birds if you listen closely, have a pattern in their chirping and if you close your eyes you can almost hear their conversations. It was unreal. It was exhilarating and terrifying all at once. I sat there just staring and listening. Jake just stared at me, mouth open and silent. When I noticed his expression I looked down and sure enough I had the same sparkling thing going on like the others. It was definitely weird but kind of pretty, mine was a faint hue of pink, you almost couldn't see it if you didn't look hard enough.

"Jake, are _you_ okay?" He shook his head as if he was clearing out his thoughts and quietly answered "Yes." "Am _I _going to be okay?" I whispered. "I'll do my best to make sure you always are Bella." he said as he took my hand in his. Jake inhaled deeply and then asked "Bella, how much do you want to know?"

"Everything Jake, tell me everything."

Three hours after Jacob began recounting the last three days of my life we sat there in silence, neither of us knowing what to say next. I for a lack of better words was in shock. Of all the ways I could've died or _changed, _this was by far the worst possible out come I could've had. The possibility of spending an eternity with out Edward had never crossed my mind, it wasn't even fathomable. Edward was constant, never changing, he was my rock. I didn't want a life with out him, or an eternity.

When I stood up Jake started to as well but I held my hand up gesturing for him to stay. I walked for a few hours I think, pretty much to the other side of the island so I could be alone with my thoughts, _if you could call them that_, they were more like hysterical ramblings. I stared out into the horizon, the sun was just beginining its decent, and it was beautiful. So I stood alone on the beach watching my first sunset on the first evening of my _afterlife _and screamed into the ocean for as loud and long as I could. When I was finished, I turned my back to the sea and headed back to the camp just as the sun had nestled into the water.

I failed to notice the tiny ripple that was left dancing over the water as I left.

_**Edward**_

I eventually started to attend Ketchikan High School as my siblings did; I went about two months late due to '_Mono.' _My teacher's were all worried that I wouldn't be able to catch up with my studies and had recommended to my_ parents _that I repeat the courses next semester and graduate the following December but I quickly proved them wrong. I mean seriously I have taken Geometery so many times now that I could not only teach the course blind folded, I could rewrite the text books too.

Things at home were not the way they used to be. I some how doubted that they ever would be like that again.

I fell into a routine too, I'd go to school come home and then go to my room until the need to hunt became almost unbearable. Carlisle warned that I was playing a dangerous game and that it needed to stop. I, as usual would compliantly agree with him and then return to my room.

Even Emmett stopped trying to coax me out of _"The Dungeon" _as he so affectionately called my room;with baseball games and ridiculous bets. Like: "_How many Grizzles' can you slap on the ass without them catching you._" _No seriously that's what he called it__. _I passed on that one, but was surprised to hear that he lost to Alice 31 to 32. _Apparently_ she was more graceful on her feet and went near undetected, unlike Emmett. I did have a 'hunch' though, that Alice might have had an upper hand in knowing which ones to go after.

As usual the towns' people were curious about our family and us individually. Some guy tried to cop-a-feel off of Rosalie in gym class, and almost lost his reproductive abilities. He was out of school for almost two weeks before returning to school with the aid of a _donut_. But at least he learned a valuable lession about unwanted sexual advances.

Poor Emmett continued to sulk about having to refrain himself during football season and had secretly wished Vampires had their own _Hogwarts. _He made me swear to never repeat that as usual had a grand time during Fashion Arts. Jasper excelled in History and impressed his teacher with his knowledge of the civil war. We still hadn't spoken much to each other since the move. We more or less would nod at each other in passing, but that was it. Carlisle quickly fell into his new routine at Ketchikan General Hospital and was already in the contending for Chief Resident Intern. Esme was making her way through the various charities and committees in town; everyone enjoyed her enthusiasm and creative input.

Everyone was quickly finding their own little niche in life, everyone but me. At night I would lay in my bed for hours just staring out into the stars thinking about Bella, and wondering if at the end of my existence I'd ever see her again.

_**Jacob**_

Bella returned after night fall, as she walked back up the beach towards me the moon illuminated her body making her looked ethereal. As if she couldn't look anymore beautiful to me then she already did.

It's no secret that I am in love with Bella, I've been in love with her since I was five years old and she let me have her ice cream cone after mine fell onto the ground at the county fair. When she would come for summer visits it was like Christmas all over again. Everyone was happier when she was around. Charlie became a completely different person altogether, happy and content which of course rubbed off on my Dad.

And I was just _Pavlov's Dog_, waiting for my bell to ring. There wasn't anything I wouldn't do for Bella. She my not have realized it before, and maybe not even now, but one day she would see me for who I am. Just as I see her.

When she made it back to the fire she looked exhausted, like she'd just been to Hell and back. I heard her break down earlier; I think anyone within a fifty mile radius would have heard her. "You okay Bells, need anything?" She shook her head. "Umm ok, did you want to come and sit?" I asked patting the ground next to me. "You know, I think I'm just going to turn in, night Jake."

She walked into the cabin and quietly closed the door behind her. I stayed outside until the fire burned down to embers and then climbed into the hammock on the porch. It was a really clear night, and stars were brilliant overhead. For a while I stared off into space wondering where the road would take us, and what would be waiting us on the other side.

I didn't even remember falling asleep until I woke up with a start as a much disoriented Bella stood over me nostriles flaring.

* * *

A/N: so so sorry about the wait. next one up soon.

BTW, have any of you read Bella Swan: The Unwanted Bride by Tumblin' Di ? If not you should head on over and check it out, it is really too good of a story to not read. Nice and light.

She is too funny and was kind enough to let us other fic pushers to borrow her "click- copy- paste method for reviews" for our readers to use(I've added a few of my own too:

_**Oh, for those who haven't left any reviews, I've made it easy for you. Just copy and paste. No excuses.**_

**I have only one word for you: edit.**

**Why haven't we had any peen yet?**

**Is Bella and Edward ever going to get back together?**

**You're on team Jacob aren't you?**

**You're genius, pure genius.**

**Can you recommend any **_**good**_** stories?**

**Do you want fries with your burger?**

**You rock!**

**I can't believe you just did that?**

**You suck!**

**I like the story, but I'm really getting a bit ticked off at the lack of 'M' substance. Come on!**

**Why don't you write a story where **_**everyone**_** is a vampire, except Bella?**

**You wrote t o n g u e and I'm reporting you to fanfic. You pervert! **

**You live in one of those Provinces where marijuana is legal, don't you?**

**I can't believe you had Edward kill Bella. **

**We want lemonade!**

**Your story is so sweet; I'm going to let my 10 year old daughter read it. (**_**Uh, you might not want to do that.)**_

**Is your story ever going to get interesting?**

**The scene in the woods left me feeling….**


	9. Chapter 9

_A/N: re-edited version. __And I still don't own pout._

**Chapter 9**

_**Bella**_

When Jacob opened his eyes and saw me standing over top of him he fell out of the hammock. I must have looked kind of terrifying to him. I suppose though that any Vampire standing over top of a human in the middle of the night straining with hunger would look kind of terrifying in that moment.

_"Whoa, easy there Bells. Everything okay?"_ He said while holding up his hands making the _easy_ sign.

_"Jacob…" _I said through a clenched jaw.

_"It's okay, I've got it covered just let me get my bag". _I waited on the porch until Jacob returned with his bag.

_"Okay I've got everything, are you ready to go?"_

_"Go where?"_

_"Hunting, where else do you think we'd be going?"_

So Jacob took me hunting for the first time, he tried to appear calm but his pulse would give him away every now and then. I tried not to giggle, but every now and then I would slip up. I mean really, Jake was 6'3" and pushing 210 lbs and _I_ made _him_ nervous, come on! I've never been hunting before. Charlie, although an avid outdoorsman never cared for hunting and obviously the Cullen's would have never even considered bringing me along. They insisted that it was _too dangerous _to have me there; so the most I knew about it was that they hunted large game: deer, elk, bear, and mountain lions. So I had no idea where to start and frankly was a bit unsettled about having to kill _innocent woodland creatures _all by myself. Luckily for me Jacob was _**more**_ then _**happy**_ to **"_teach_"** me to hunt _**deer**_. _I think he was a bit nervous to let me go unfed any longer then I already had_. Jacob had learned to hunt like all the others on the Reservation, and actually had quite a bit of experience using a cross-bow back in La Push. While he did prefer a hamburger and fries from the Greasy Spoon in town he wasn't apposed to hunting wild game when the need arose.

It's hard to explain _thirst; _one minute I was alone in my room mulling over everything that had happened and the next, I was towering over Jacob's sleeping body. My throat was killing me, it was so parched that it burned. I keep trying to clear my throat to ease it, but it only made it worse. I was growing tired and impatient when we finally found a clearing in the woods where seven deer were feeding off of it's lush green carpet. Jacob silently motioned me to kneel down as he got into position with his bow. The realization that I was about to have my first feedwasboth thrilling and nauseating. Jake had already cocked the arrow back and was setting aim on the biggest buck in the herd before I took notice. When I tore my eyes off of the herd to look back at Jacob he had fired off his first shot, successfully finding its way to its unsuspecting target. The rest of the herd dispersed before he even hit the ground. _"Your turn."_ Jake said as he looked back at me over his shoulder.

_"Jake, I can't. It's not even dead yet. Look it just blinked!" _I said while cowering behind him.

_"Bella come on. It's just a little deer, nothing to worry about. He won't feel a thing-" _

_"Seriously and the smell, that is not appetizing -" _

_"Okay suit your self." _

I sighed with relief before registering that Jake had reached down quickly and pierced the animal in the throat with his pocket knife, allowing a thick stream of crimson to flow over its neck. My throat was now unbelievably dry, like I hadn't had a drink in over a thousand years. I suddenly felt dizzy and the hunger I felt was no longer bearable, without another thought and reached down and drained the animal dry.

And this is how it went for the next two weeks on the island. Jacob stayed with me the whole time and helped me _adjust_ as best he could. He would let me rant and go on when I wanted to and was quiet when I needed it even more. He seemed to judge my moods pretty well and was always on top of it, what ever _it_ was. We combed all over the island tpgether while he taught me to track and hunt animals. It took me a few times before I was comfortable enough to use my own senses to help guide us, instead of solely depending on Jake. I'll never forget when I led us through the woods and killed on my own for the very first time. Jake looked like such a proud Papa when I boasted: _"Look, not even a drop!" _while motioning towards my clothes.

All things considered we got along really well. I was slowly coming to terms with everything and grateful that I at least had Jake; I would never have been able to make it through any of this with out him. I don't even want to imagine what would have happened to me if he had not found me that night.

I wasn't sure at first how to broach the subject with him at first and figured _direct and to the point _would be less painful.

_"Jake…." _

_"Hmmm" _he replied while adding another piece of wood to the fire. We had just returned from a hunt and Jake was cooking up a piece of meat for himself in the fire when I asked him about going home.

_"What? Bella you know you can't go back right? It's not safe yet-"_

_"No Jake, not me…. you."_

_"What? No way I can't just leave you here, no way-" _

_"Jacob what about school? You can't just drop out, you've already missed over two weeks because of me any more time and you'll be repeating for sure." _

_"Wait, you think I care if I fail? Bells please I'm fine, you're more important to me then all of that any how-" _

_"Jacob, what about Billy? Don't you think he's worried sick about his only son running off with the corpse of a soon-to-be-vampire?" _

_"Oh that. He'll understand-" _

_"Jake, seriously I'd give anything to be able to go home but I can't, it's not even an option anymore but you have a choice, you can still have a life with your friends and family; and it would be beyond selfish of me to keep you here away from them." _

_"So what you like, don't want me to come back…."_ He was starting to sound defeated right know.

_"No, no nothing like that. It's just hard for me to imagine the pain my parents are going through right now with me gone. I just don't want to put anyone else's parents through that too, do you understand?" _

_"I guess but what about you?"_

_"I'll be fine now that my very best friend has taught me everything I need to know about camping and hunting. And you'll come back on the weekends... if you want to, right?" _

_"Yeah yeah, sure-sure, of course Bells." _

_"Good. So tomorrow is Sunday and you should get ready to head back to La-Push and talk with your Dad and try to sort all of that out…. And if he hasn't murdered you by Friday morning I'll see you after school!"_ I winked at him and then punched him in the arm lightly.

_"Ouch, geez Bells you don't have to beat me up."_ He joked as he rubbed his upper arm.

So it was agreed, Jake would come up Friday's after school and then leave on Sunday. It wasn't the most exciting life one could imagine; being stranded on a deserted island alone and all, but it was as good as it was going to get for the moment. And honestly a few days alone to sort out and deal with my feelings with out interruption was a welcoming thought.

The next morning I helped Jacob load up the boat and hugged him good bye. I would've cried if I could, but alas it was a human ability that I no longer possessed.

I handed Jake a letter for Billy apologizing for keeping his son from him, and pleaded, _well begged really:_ that he consider letting him come to visit me on the weekends. I even offered to tutor him so that he wouldn't fall behind in school. I asked him if he would look out for my Dad and help him to move on. Then I wrote out the recipe for my lasagne that was Charlie's favourite and asked if maybe Sue or Rebecca would be willing to make it for him from time to time.

I stood on the shore and waved good bye to Jacob. And when I could no longer see him or the boat anymore I fell to my knees.

* * *

A/N: I know, two Chapters in one night. I just feel so bad about the 2 week delay. Hope you like this too. Review, Review if you do.

* I re-edited because I didn't like the run on conversation chapter.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: I do not own Twilight, only my own original ramblings inspired by it.

**Chapter 10**

**Bella**

The first week on the island was quiet to say the least. Unnerving at times, but welcomed. I hunted early each morning and sat on the beach beside the bonfire every night. Each night under a moon lit sky I would replay that last week of my human life over and over, trying to decipher the _exact _moment that I lost Edward. Was it when Jasper leapt towards me? On the ride home? Was it something I said that solidified his decision to leave me? How is any of this possible, it's like a bad dream that I long to awaken from. After three solitary sunrises and sun sets I come to accept my new reality, I am a Vampire and Edward is gone.

Just before dusk on Friday Jake returns, I met him on the beach and helped him secure the boat to the tree that he had previously used and helped him carry up the extra nap sacs he brought along with him. Jake enveloped me in a tight embrace and sighed.

"Rough week?" I ask quietly.

"To say the least, yes."

Jake started to unpack his bags when we entered the cabin together. He pulled out extra clean clothes and soap, food for himself and an extra bottle of kerosene for his lanterns. He then sheepishly pulled out his text books and a stack of past due assignments and then looked up at me from under his lashes.

"I'm a little bit behind, if you could imagine."

"Do tell."

"My teachers weren't too impressed with me ditching school for the last few weeks. I missed a few tests but my Dad convinced them to let me make up the work I missed. I have to complete all of the assignments by Monday and will have to write each test during lunch and after school next week."

"Oh, so what you're saying is I have my work cut out for me?"

"Yeah, more or less."

I give him a wide grin and continue to help him unpack.

"That bag is for you." He motioned towards a blue canvas nap sac.

"What's in it?" I ask him as I start to pull out various books, about half a dozen or so.

"Oh wow Jake, for me?"

"Yes, my Dad thought you could use something to occupy your time with while I'm away." I smile up at him while pulling out the last book, as it pulls free from the bag an envelope falls on to the floor.

"What's this?" I ask as I bend over to retrieve it. When I turned it over to look at it, I notice my name is scrolled across it in a neat script.

Jake looked up quickly and glanced at the letter in my hand.

"Oh, that's from my Dad, he wanted to talk to you about some things."

"Oh."

"Um, I'm going to start of the fire, kind of getting hungry already."

"Okay, I'll meet you outside in a minute."

Jake walked out side leaving me alone with my letter.

_Dear Bella,_

_This is not something I ever imagined having to discuss with you. I'd like to say from now that I'm so very sorry I have to have this kind of conversation with you. You were always thought of as family Bella, you and Charlie both. And for that reason alone I will try to make this as easy as I can._

(Oh boy here it comes.)

_As you must already know but bears repeating, you now are to follow the conditions of the treaty put into place when the Cullen's first came to the Olympic Peninsula. As such, you are no longer allowed to set foot on Tribal Land. If at any point you pose a threat to; harm; bite; or kill a human, then the treaty will be revoked and you will have to be destroyed._

_I urge you to follow these rules and remain in control of yourself at all times. It took quite a bit of convincing to persuade the tribes to let you go unharmed. Many are upset that the ceremony did not take place as planned and will look for any reason at all to come and find you. __The fact that you were changed against your will and have a long standing relationship with members of our tribe we were able to insure your safety, for now. _

_I will always look out for your father; you need not worry about him. It pains me to see how much he is suffering right now. He continues to search for you; it is thought that an animal has taken you, and you are assumed dead. But Charlie continues to hope that one day you will come back to him. _

_Jacob has my permission to continue to visit with you on the island, for now. And you have permission to stay on it, but remember you are to stay away for La Push and for the safety of others I am asking that you do not return to Forks, it is simply too dangerous. __But Bella, hear me now; as much as I think of you as family, Jacob is my son. He is my flesh and blood and I will not have danger come to him in any way and by anyone. So you must know that if you harm my son I will be the one coming after you. _

_I truly wish that none of this had happened and I am sorry for what you are about to embark upon. I wish you the best Bella, always._

_Stay safe,_

_Billy_

When I finished reading the letter I released the breath that I was holding. I stared dumbfounded at it for a few moments before I folded it up and replaced it in its sleeve. The sun was dipping into the ocean as I made my way down the beach towards Jacob.

"Hey."

"Hi."

"I take it you read the letter."

"Yup."

We sat silent for a few moments before I started to ask him about his week. Sure enough it was a roller coaster of emotions for everyone back at La Push. Billy was relieved to see his son return and then scolded him for endangering his life. The tribal meetings were heated to say the least. At one point Paul and Jacob began to square off with one another until Sam ordered Paul to back down. The tribal leaders argued into the night as to what to do with the new Vampire and reluctantly agreed to extend the treaty.

Jacob continued talking between bites of his supper and finally began to relax. He then told me about the search parties and the rumours circulating in town.

Jacob took a deep breath before he started to recount the various stories. The first and the most obvious one was that the Cullen's had vanished a day or two _before _my disappearance. I could almost feel my blood begin to boil as he continued.

"Yeah, Charlie was able to contact Dr. Cullen in **Alaska **of all places, and he told your father that they left a few days prior and that everyone in the family could vouch for Edward on the night in question. He even went as far as to have his lawyer draft a sworn affidavit that they were already unpacking they're new home on the night you disappeared. Can you believe that?"

Through clenched teeth I sharply answered "No."

"The other rumours were that you ran off with them and that they are hiding you. You killed yourself because he broke up with you for Lauren (insert eye roll). And now, the most probable: you were attacked by a bear and drug off."

His voice continued almost as a whisper, "The only thing they can't quite figure out is what made you wander off on your own. Charlie is still holding out for your safe return just based on this alone, he even started to check the database for other girls fitting your description, but that was almost a dead end. There was only one girl with your vague description that went missing a few months ago from Seattle."

When I made no attempt to speak he asked if I liked the books he brought with him for me to read. "I know, a library and everything!" he chuckled, "You should have seen Quil's face when he saw me coming out with all those books; he thought I had lost my mind surly, especially when he noticed they were all _Chic Fic's_."

He continued to ramble on about anything and everything in order to change the subject but I remained silent within my thoughts. _He lied. _I could feel a coil tightening within my body aching to burst. After all the would be tears I longed to shed over Edward, I was now slowly simmering with anger towards him.

I shook off my bad mood and put on a happy face for Jacob's behalf the following morning. I left before dawn for an early hunt and when I returned I began to pulling out Jacob's assignment's and laid them on the table while he finished his breakfast. The remainder of the weekend was spent tutoring Jake and making sure he would a satisfactory grade on his assignments.

On Sunday Jacob packed up and began to head down to the boat. After a quick good bye, once again I waved him farewell from my spot on the shore. All the while in the back of my mind stewing over Edward's grave betrayal. Boy, what I'd give to be with in arms reach of him right now.

* * *

A/N: Thank you all for your reviews, each and every one. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

The next chapter is under way and will be out soon. We are in for a bumpy ride.

Psst... Do you see that button at the bottom of your screen? Yeah, that one. No no, the big shiny one. Yeah that one. Hit it!


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I don't own Twilight, just a freaky obsession with it. Hold on to your seats It's going to be a bumpy ride.

_**Chapter 11**_

_**Bella**_

It's been almost a year since I was changed. A lot of things have changed since then. Last Christmas Charlie and Renee held a memorial service in my honour and by late Spring Dad slowly began to except that I wasn't going to come home. The rumour mills stopped turning and after a while life as they know it found it's slow rhythm again. The Cullen's had not returned to their home in Forks and no one had heard from them since their Lawyer delivered the affidavit.

Jacob continued to see me through out the year; every Friday without fail. I felt bad, and tried to convince him to leave a couple of weekends a month open for his _human_ friends, but once he made up his mind about something he was like a dog with a bone and no one was going to take it away from him.

He still hadn't phased yet. Everyone was so sure that he would've phased by now, especially seeing as how he was hanging out with his own pet Vampire on the weekends. He was growing like it was going out of style to. I swear one week he shot up two inches and gained about 15 pounds (of solid muscle). He did not look his young 17 years at all, that's for sure.

We eventually had to start hunting over on the mainland as to not upset the deer population on my tiny island. We made sure that we stayed clear of all borders leading to La Push and Forks. This fall was exceptionally warm, an _Indian Summer_. While out hunting one day we came across a cliff right on the coast, about 40 feet or so above water.

"That's a long way down."

"Yes it is. It's such a rush that it's actually fun."

"What's fun?"

"Cliff diving."

"What?" The idea was terrifyingly foreign to me, _Cliff diving_?

"Yeah all the guys do it back home; usually in the hopes of impressing some girl their into."

"No way, someone would actually _fling_ themselves off of this to impress someone?"

"Yup" He pulled on the end of the word making an actual 'pop' sound at the end of it.

"So, you've gone Cliff Diving?"

"Yes."

"You, you've actually done this?"

"Umm, yea. Why is this so hard to believe?"

"I don't know it just seems so dangerous; reckless; an utterly stupid thing to do to ones self."

Jake shrugs his shoulders at me.

"I mean, what if you miss? What if the wind pushes you back into the rocks? What if you miss judge the depth of the water below and become seagull snacks?"

"I don't know, we just do it."

"Oh."

"Want to try?"

I look at my best friend like he just spoken in Latin and shrug my shoulders unenthusiastically and say "Sure."

So here we are 40 feet above stupidity, staring down into minus one thousand degrees of fucking cold water. _I can do this, I can do this, I can do this _I chant to myself silently.

"You ready Bells?" Jake is all big bad muscles and wide toothy grin.

"Yup." Emphasising on that 'pop' sound again.

"Once you get comfortable enough you can try that one." Jake points out across the beach about a mile away from us to a cliff that is about 100 feet above the water. It looked like a one way ticket to an early grave. _For humans obviously_. I shuddered at the thought.

"One crazy leap at a time Jake, lets not get a head of ourselves."

"Okay, so on three?"

"Wait, 1-2-3 then jump, or 1-2-jump?"

"1-2-3 jump." He says as he pulls himself in to a divers stance.

"Whoa whoa whoa, so are we going at the same time or does on of us go first and then wait for the other at the bottom?"

"Bella really, you couldn't possibly be scared. Are you?" He asks with a mischievous grin. Oh no he didn't.

"Are you saying I'm scared?"

"Yup."

"So you think I'm chicken and I won't do it?"

"Yup." there's the 'pop' again.

"So what your saying is-"

"You're 'yella."

"Excuse me?" I ask in disbelief? And there is the million dollar smile again, I'm sure it works mighty fine back in La Push. And while I'm in my never ending deep thought Jacob does the unthinkable. He made a clucking sound.

"You really didn't just do what I think you just did, did you?"

"Bauk, Bauk, Buk Buk Buk". He even flapped his arms the smug fucker.

"Oh your going down Jacob Black, mark my words."

"Ok, on the count of three 1-2-"

"THREE!" I scream as I grab his hand, pulling him with me on my way down.

We scream like a couple of hysterical school girls all the way down to the cold water below. After a few moments we both resurface and gasp for air (mine more so just out of habit). We stare at each other our eyes as big as saucers, and then break out into a fit of laughter.

"Again?" He asks while wiping the water from his face.

"Oh yeah!"

We jumped 4 more times that day, the last jump was on the _mother of all cliffs_. One hundred feet above sea level we stood silent holding hands. I wondered at the back of my mind if Jake could handle this, physically. He may not have phased yet and as frustrating as that was for him I knew it wasn't too far off, besides his rapid growth spurts Jake was growing unnaturally strong. He could easily lift up his rabbit as though it weighed no more then one of his book bags And talk about fast, he had no problem keeping up with me when we would go hunting together. Jake was close no doubt; I just hope he was close enough that this fall won't kill him. I grimace at the thought but quickly shake it away.

So hand in hand we stood there as the wind blew around us, my hair blowing up and around my body.

I felt him squeeze my hand and with that we launched ourselves off of the cliff together in silence.

The current was strong underneath the waves and we tumbled around for what seemed like forever. Each time we could see the light breaking through the surface above us, another wave would pull us back down further into the sea. I looked over at Jake and could tell that he would start to run out of oxygen soon if we didn't pull out of this undertow, so I grabbed a hold of his wrist and pulled us through the current. When we resurfaced the waves swelling on top actually pushed us towards the shore. _The Gods are being kind_. As we ran up the beach together and I leaned up against a large boulder with Jacob facing me while we tried to catch our breath.

Simultaneously we both look back up at the cliff that we lunged off of and then broke out into a fit of laughter. Jake laughed so hard that he literally had tears streaming down his face. I was doubled over with laughter, this was by far the craziest thing I had ever done (in either life). I brought my hand onto his shoulder balancing myself against him. Our foreheads were touching now as our laughter began to die off. Jacob sighed deeply and asked if I was: "Ready to go again?"

When he looked up at me through his thick dark lashes the air around us instantly shifted. It felt as though a light bulb had finally turned on in my head. We stood like that for a moment just staring at one another. A million thoughts were running through my mind at that moment: Do I kiss him? Do I wait for him to kiss me? Does he even want to kiss me? What do this mean for us? Everything will change if I do this, I just know it.

Jake brought his hand up to my face and softly stroked my cheek with the back of his hand. I straightened up and continued to stare at him wondering what might have been and what never was. And in a moment of clarity I reached for Jacobs face and pulled myself to him and gave him my _new_ first kiss.

It was intense and passionate. While there were similarities to the emotions I may have felt when I kissed _him,_ it was also very different. I laughed to myself about the irony in this situation: In my human life the only man I was to kiss was not alive. His lips were always cool and firm against mine and he always struggled to keep his kisses chaste. Now here I am kissing a very much alive-and-well human with soft, supple, warm lips and I was the one who was no longer a part of the living.

So this was it? This is were my life has lead me, to Jacob? As our kiss deepened and intensified I could hear his breathing increase and the rapid acceleration of his heart. It was a welcomed sound, a sound that I longed for.

My eyes opened in a flash when Jacob sighed into my mouth . My body's reaction immediately changed. _Prey_. It was out there and within grasp. The pull was magnetic and before Jacob could open his eyes I was off.

I ran quicker then I ever had before; following the drumming of another heart, a much smaller one then the one I've grown accustomed to for the past year. _Oh he smells so sweet_, like a ripe apple ready to fall from the tree. I could see him now; his eyes widening with fear as I sprung myself at him knocking him onto the ground Poor little Seth started to scream when he realized he was now face to face with the _Vampire girl_.

I had him pinned to the ground straddling over top of his legs, snarling and brought my hand back getting ready to strike when I was hit by what felt like a brick wall. My body was sent flying through the air, tumbling before landing firmly onto my feet. I swung around in full crouch mode ready to attack whatever it was that had interrupted me from my hunt.

Before me stood the biggest russet coloured wolf that I had ever seen. It's paws were larger then my head; and on all fours, it was still a good two feet taller then me. This was one big fucking wolf; but it stood between me and my snack and for that reason alone it needed to die.

_**Jacob**_

I figured I'd survive the jump but hadn't anticipated the under tow. For a moment there I didn't know how it would end, or how much longer I could hold my breath. Luckily for me Bella knew; she always knew things almost instinctually I guess, and pulled us through. She was saving me for a change. When we reached the boulder the seriousness of our actions became unbearable funny, I mean really _who voluntarily throws themselves off of a cliff? _

I never expected what followed to happen, not in a million years. I was stunned for a moment as it was Bella who initiated the kiss but once the shock wore off I poured my heart and soul into that kiss. It was without a shadow of a doubt the best kiss of my life, even if it only lasted for a moment.

Today was a day chock full of surprises awaiting me at every turn. It took me a minute to realize that Bella had stopped kissing me and when I opened my eyes Bella was gone. It wasn't until I heard Seth's screams that I realized what really had happened.

So here I stand facing off against my best friend, the love of my life. Initially I didn't even realize that I was phasing until my I felt my body tear and felt the shreds of cloth fall from it.

Bella didn't even look real, I couldn't comprehend what I was about to do. Seth was crying on the ground behind me; he wasn't badly injured but that didn't matter, what did matter was that the treaty was broken and the rest of the pack had now heard everything that had happened around me and were on their way and out for blood.

Bella stood there and cocked her head to the side and smirked at me. Her lip curling back over her teeth; she was ready for a full on battle, she was in it that deep. And her eyes, her eyes were now feline and luminescent. I tilted my head at her as she began to walk around in a wide arc in front of me, testing her boundary. She paused momentarily to look up at me through her long thick lashes flashing me her sexiest grin. _Oh boy, she plays dirty. _As expected she tried to run past me to get at Seth. I leapt through the air and knocked her down, sending her skidding across the forest floor. Before she could sit up I pounced on her, pinning her down. She tried to struggle free but couldn't break out of my hold, every time she would try to sit up I would throw my full weight back at her. _Bella. _Bella. "Bella!" I called her name at least ten times before she heard it and came out from where ever she was.

_**Bella**_

"Jacob." I practically whispered his name to him as I looked up into his face. He was still on top of me and I had no idea how we got into this position, until I heard Seth's sniffling behind Jacob. "Oh no." I could almost feel a salty burn in my eyes.

"Seth, get out of here now!" Jacob yelled over his shoulder at him before turning to face me. I searched his face for any sign of forgiveness but all that I found was remorse.

"Jake, I- I am so sorry. I don't know what happened." My voice cracked at the end of the sentence. He closed his eyes tightly and then reopened them determined.

"Bella. Go." I blinked up at him incredulously.

"Now. Go." he urged.

"What, no. I-I can't. I want to stay with you. I'm s-sorry I won't do it again. I didn't mean to hurt him." I could feel my body beginning to quake.

He stood up and pulled me to my feet.

"Bella, the pack while be here in 3 minutes. If you are here they will destroy you." He looked at me blankly.

"Jake…" He inhaled deeply and then released it.

"Bella, if they find you here I will have to assume my position within the pack, I will have to….help."

"Jacob, please it was a horrible mistake I'll never do it again I'm sorry!" I can feel my body beginning to hyperventilate.

"2 minutes. Go." I blink back at him.

"Bella, I won't be able to stop them. This is it, the end of the road for us. You either run or you will die." My eyes are burning.

"I am so sorry Jacob."

"1 minute."

I step into him and he braces himself as I kiss him one last time on the lips.

"I love you Jacob." I said quietly. "I always will." I can feel my eyes brimming now. He nods at me and then I am off. I run as far and as fast as I can through the trees; and as I run, I can very faintly hear Jacob whisper back: "I love you too."

I ran for hours. I out ran a pack of wolves and ran clear through the Canadian border. I think I was some where between BC and Alberta. It was dark, wet, cold and raining. I felt so lost and so very, very empty. I slid down a tree and sank into the ground pulling my knees up into my chest. When the rain started to encapsulate me in a thin sheen of ice, it dawned on me; today is September thirteenth.

_Happy Un-Birthday to me._

* * *

A/N: Whoa Nelly where did that come from? Review, Review, Review.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

_**Bella**_

**October**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**Bella**

_**November**_


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

**Bella**

_**December**_


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

**Bella**

_**January**_


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: This isn't Twilight; it's a _re-imagining, _like The Wiz.

For clarity sake Edward's time line is still ahead of Bella's.

**Chapter 16**

**_August of the following year._**

"This just in, today in the town of Forks, Washington there is breaking news in the disappearance of local high school student Isabella Swan…"

_The news program displays a picture of Bella before returning to its live feed outside of Forks City Hall._

"Almost two years ago on September 15th Isabella Swan; daughter of Forks Police Chief Charles Swan, went missing in the woods beside her home on 775 K Street. Though several search parties conducted within the area failed to locate Isabella, evidence of a possible animal attack was found. It has been theorized that Miss Swan became lost in the woods that night and fell victim to a Bear or Mountain Lion.

Attempts at locating Isabella or her remains had run cold until late yesterday afternoon. Tourists vacationing in the Olympic National Park made a gruesome discovery while hiking near Long Creek; a denser, more remote part of the park. This area of the park is not accessible by the various hiking trails maintained by the Department of Natural Resources.

At 3:08 p.m. avid outdoorsmen _and hikers_; Ken and Darla Schmaltz, discovered partial human remains that are rumoured to fit the description of Isabella Swan. Dr. Saunders with the Forks Coroner's Office released a statement earlier today stating that: "_Partial human remains were found and are being examined. The estimated age of the remains are thought to be that of a young woman between the ages of seventeen to twenty-three. Because the remains were out in the elements for nearly 2 years much evidence has been lost."_

The Coroner hopes to identify the body later today as Miss Swan. Blood typing will be used in aiding with identification; coupled with the fact that no other young woman fitting the description of the remains has been reported missing in or around the State of Washington, The Coroner's Office feels fairly confident that the remains found are in fact those of Miss Swan.

If the Coroners office concludes that the remains are Isabella's, then the mystery surrounding her disappearance will finally be solved. Phone calls to the Forks Police Department were not immediately returned, and attempts at contacting Chief Swan were unsuccessful.

Channel 9 News will continue to keep you up to date as more details in this case evolve. This is Donna Hanford-Platt reporting live from Forks, Washington. Back to you Rodney."

_Almost as soon as the broadcast completed the phone rang._

"Hello? Yes… I see. And you are sure? Okay… thanks for calling."

_When the connection went dead, a dial tone rang out into the silent house; the beeping sounds that followed were made by a series of numbers that hadn't been dialled in over a year._

"Renee, it's Charlie," _Charlie fought to keep his voice calm and even. After a long pause he continued…_

"They've found her Renee…" _his resolve began to crack under the weight of his tears._

"They've found our baby."

**_Meanwhile in Alaska…_**

"I know he plans on leaving us soon," _Alice confided to Carlisle as the Cullen's (minus one), walked silently through the woods by their home in Northern Alaska._

"We don't know what he plans to do yet," _Carlisle answers_.

"We have to do something though; we can't just let him leave-"

"It's not like you can keep him here against his will Alice. Edward's a _big boy _now and if he wants to leave he can." _Rosalie's voice was dripping with sarcasm._

_Alice's narrowed her eyes before she began her rebuttal._

"That's not what I mean _Rose._ I understand that he's a _big boy_ but what I'm saying is that although my vision isn't clear; I get a distinct feeling that he is going to put himself in a dangerous situation and _I_ myself don't want to see him in anymore pain then he already is,"

"Well _I_ think that we can't baby sit him forever, it's been almost two years since the _human_ died and eventually he's going to have to get over it."

"Why do you always have to be such a BITCH?" _Alice forcefully poked her finger at Rose._

"He's _our_ brother and _I_ AM worried about him. Oh and by the way… her name was ISABELLA! Don't pretend like you don't know." _Alice was shaking with anger now._

"Okay that's enough you two!" _Esme stepped in between them._

"We can't decide for Edward how he chooses to live his life, if he is going to leave then he is. If we keep trying to stone wall him at every turn he will just continue to pull further away from us," _taking a deep breath Esme continued._

"And as much as I _do not _want to see Edward leave, maybe some time away to think things through; to think them over with out all of us around might be the best thing for him. He is still grieving. Maybe it's time we all took a step back and let him do what he needs to do."

Everyone stood for a moment absorbing Esme's words. It was late afternoon and the family hadn't even begun their hunt yet. They let the weight of the conversation drop for now; because if Edward was going to leave they at least wanted to have an opportunity to say goodbye to him first.

"Come on everyone, if we're going to make it back before nightfall then we'd better get a move on." Carlisle said while gesturing for them to continue on with their hunt.

_**Edward**_

I wanted out, that I knew for sure. We just graduated once again and if I left the family now it wouldn't be thought odd. I just feel like I'm suffocating; every time I think about leaving Alice is all over me for details. As much as I adore my sister I am near the end of my rope as far as patience goes. I get that she still feels guilty over not seeing _it_ sooner but now she just won't leave me alone at all.

I doubt this will come as a shock to them, I've become more reclusive since we moved and don't even hunt with them anymore. My relationships with them individually are _strained_ to put it lightly. Jasper stays on his side of the house and I stay on mine. Rose and I have ceased all communication; she's even gotten good at guarding her thoughts while around me, only singing Show Tunes when in my presence. Emmett doesn't even know what to do with me anymore. I feel most bad about that, it felt like I was smacking a puppy on the nose every time I rejected his companionship.

Carlisle and Esme were the most understanding _and patient _though; they knew I needed space and tried not to invade it. Sometimes at night Esme would come into my room and lay beside me just to stare out the window with me. She'd never say a word; just lay beside me so I would remember that I was not alone.

I don't know yet where I'll go, or for how long I'll be away. I do however know that I most likely won't return. That's why I keep dragging my feet and changing my mind; I don't know if I'm ready to let them go yet.

I don't know if I ever will be.

So here I sit, on the couch randomly flipping through the channels on the television trying to distract my mind from the only thought that ever runs through it: _Bella_. I think about her so much these days that I almost thought my mind playing tricks on me again when I heard her name; but sure enough on the screen in front of me was a picture of Bella.

I blinked but it does not disappear, _surely I must be seeing things_. I haven't seen her face since… _that night _and here she is in HDTV looking more beautiful then ever.

I remember that picture, I took it. She threw me the camera and asked that I take one of her and her father before… I try to shake away the memory when the reporter's voice broke me from my thoughts.

"_This just in, the Forks County Coroners Office has just released the latest details in the disappearance case of Isabella Swan. _

_Earlier today I reported that partial human remains were found near Long Creek in the Olympic National Park late yesterday afternoon. The remains were retrieved and then examined by Forks County Coroner Dr. Saunders; Dr. Saunders has just announced during a press conference, that the blood typing used to identify the remains found have in fact been identified as Isabella Marie Swan. _

_Isabella was a Senior at Forks High School whom had just celebrated her 18__th__ birthday two days prior to - what is believed to be - attacked and killed by a wild animal. After examining the remains, the Coroners office has speculated that Miss Swan was mauled by a bear due to extensive fractures found on some of the remaining bones discovered. Where only a partial skeleton has been found, this theory can only be…_

Oh. My. God.

_This is not happening. This is not happening_. I blinked three more times as I stared speechless at the picture on the screen. _They have found Isabella._

I can feel what little stomach contents I have left churning inside of me. Before the reporter concludes her story I have purged myself three times. I return from the bathroom just in time to hear her say:

"_Funeral arrangements have been made for 1 p.m. on Friday the 27__th__ at Mount Olympus Funeral Home on 481 Calawah Way. __This brings to an end two years of pain, sorrow and speculation; for both the family of Isabella Swan and also for a town in mourning for one of their own. __This is Donna Hanford-Platt reporting live from Forks, Washington. Back to you Rodney."_

I stood there rooted motionless to the floor; the only sound in the house emanating from the clock, almost as though it wass waiting impatiently for me to decide: _do or die_?

It didn't take long to figure out which one I was to choose. Before I had a chance to finish my thought I was out the door.

_**Back in the Forest:**_

"Oh no!" _Alice gasped as her legs gave out from underneath her_.

"Alice what is it?" _Carlisle and Jasper are at her side in a millisecond._

"It's Edward… he's decided. He's going to the Volturi… to beg for his death."

* * *

A/N: So what did everyone think of the break up between JxB last chapter?

Loved it, hated it?

Let me know what you think about that one and this one too.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: I don't own Twilight. Disappointing as it is...**

**Sorry this update has taken so long, had all kinds of RL things to attend to. Oh, and Edward**_** 'didn't want to talk about it.' **_

**-men ;)**

**Chapter 17**

_**Edward**_

"_Now calling flight AC1875 Vancouver to Rome, Italy. Now calling flight AC1875 Vancouver to Rome, Italy. All passengers seated in rows 26 through 18 please board at gate 3."_

I swung my bag over my shoulder as I made my way over to the boarding gate. Two Air Canada boarding agents waited on either side of the entryway to the ramp that lead to the Boeing 767. As I shuffled forward in line, I thought about the bread crumbs left in my wake to throw the others off my track. I purposely bought five airline tickets departing from five different airports to lead my family astray. I even went as far as to leave my coat at one airport along the way to buy me extra time. I needed to be sure that nothing was going to get in my way. I was done, I couldn't continuing living out the lie that my life had become anymore. Bella was dead and there was now nothing left for me to fight for.

Although she had been gone for almost two years, there was still this delusional grain of hope in the depths of my _soul_ that always believed she was still out there somewhere. I believed that our story wasn't over yet, that somehow I would find her again.

While I watched the news that day all hope was lost. It became abundantly clear to me that no matter what I did or where I went I would never escape my thoughts of her.

I was pulled from my thoughts when the boarding agent asked for my ticket. When she tore off the stub from my ticket and looked up at me her eyes widened, and then a familiar strawberry blush grew from her chest all the way up to her eyes. _Fuck my life._

"H-here you go Mr. Cullen, have a n-nice trip." Her voice stuttered and cracked.

As I continued down the ramp I heard the other agent ribbing her, "Gee Angela way to go... _Smooth move ex-lax_."

Once the flight embarked upon its journey the attendants made their rounds on the plane with refreshments. One very lively stewardess made her way down the isle towards me,

"Hi Darling', what can I get ya?" she asked. When I looked up at her I could hear the rapid intake of breathe in her chest.

"A coke please – _I paused as I took in her name tag_ - Lanny,"

When I meet her eyes they widened, followed by the automatic flushing of her cheeks. There was something else there in her expression, an almost surprised recognition.

"_Wow. Wow, his eyes look just like_ -" but her train of thought was interrupted by the older woman from across the isle.

"Miss, can I please get some napkins," she asked. "I've just spilled my drink all over this poor gentleman," she motioned to the man sitting next to her whose lap was now wearing the contents of her cup.

The stewardess looked back at me before answering the other passenger.

"Yes Ma'am... I'll go get you something a little bit more... absorbent."

The stewardess looked at me apologetically and then handed me my drink before hurrying away to the front of the cabin. When she left I wondered who's eyes she had referred to in her thoughts, but then quickly shook it off reasoning that unbeknownst to her she's probably served quite a few of _my kind _over the years.

I was forced to exchange pleasantries with the older gentleman beside me for the duration of our thirteen hour long flight. He continued to remind me that television was _only_ invented the year before he was born (_which was in 1924_). He griped on that today's youth was_ lazy and_ _unappreciative,_ and I continued to resist the urge to tell him that I was six when he was born.

Once landed, I took the one and a half hour train ride to Volterra followed by a 20 minute bus ride up to the main city. When I stepped off the train the town looked just as Carlisle had always described: _Breath taking_.

The Tuscan sun was just beginning to kiss the surrounding hills goodnight when I made my way through the town's centre. I quickly found the secret entrance to Medici Fortress. This entrance was used solely by the Voultri to come and go as they pleased without drawing any unwanted attention from the towns' people.

The Fortress has been entwined with the Volturi's long sorted past since as far back as the 1400's, it was and still is considered to be a sanctuary for our kind.

I was quickly ushered inside by a member of the Guard, Felix. I followed him through a labyrinth of alleyways and corridors until finally I was brought into the foyer just outside of the great room.

"Wait here," he ordered while mentally and physically sized me up.

He was unaware that I could hear his internal monologue and silently smirked to himself when he concluded that it would be too easy_,_ and _almost _no fun at all to kill me in my condition.

Our thoughts were interrupted when a commotion broke out down another darkened corridor.

"Please, please, it was a mistake!"

Two guards were dragging a man down the corridor towards us. I instinctively tensed as I heard all manner of thoughts being shouted between the guards and the man.

"You knew the rules Michael, and you chose to break them. You had to be either stupid or suicidal to break them so close to home. But don't worry, I'm sure Aro will take pity on you and make it quick."

The other guard snickered and then added: "Or not."

Both Guards were now laughing maniacally. Michael began to yell and trash about desperately trying to escape as they drug him into the great room.

"You, in now," Felix ordered after the Guards successfully strong armed Michael inside.

I quickly took in my surroundings when I entered the Great room. Ancient stone walls followed the curve of the room around in a large semi-circle; the room was no doubt a turret from the view of the 3 story tall ceiling overhead. Beams of moon light shone in through the alabaster windows above, and lanterns fixed to the stone walls around the room provided sparse illumination for the coven of vampires that called Volterra home.

There were around thirty or so Vampires in the Great room scattered around in groups of two or more. After I cleared the threshold to the room the large wooden doors slammed shut behind us. Felix motioned for me to move to the side as the other guards drug Michael to stand before three empty thrones. One by one: Caius, Marcus, and Aro sauntered up to take their places at the head of the court.

"Michael, how nice to see you again," Aro began with a triumphant smile.

"Aro, I can explain. It was an honest mistake, I meant no harm-" Michael held up his hands defensively.

"Ah yes I see Michael, but this isn't your first offence. Nor is this your first appearance before us for this very same... _mistake_. And frankly Micheal, you're getting sloppy in your old age."

"Aro please, I lost control just for a moment. It won't happen again I swear it-"

"Of course it won't," - _Caius interjected_ – "The Volturi _do not_ give second chances. You of all people know this more then most. So yes, I agree._ It won't happen again_."

Before turning his back to them, Cauis nodded to Demetrius and Alec who was standing on either side of Michael, simultaneously the two Guards grabbed Michael by his arms and shoulders and tore him limb from limb.

It looked brutally painful, but proved to be a quick death none the less. After they cleared the room Felix nudged me forward to where Aro stood.

"Here's some fresh meat for you Aro."

When Aro turned around to take in my appearance he wrinkled his nose. I didn't need the aid of a mirror to show me how I looked, because if I looked half as bad as I felt I would have been a lucky man.

"And _whom_ do we have here?" Aro asked with a devious grin before taking my hand in his.

I didn't even have time to flinch as the old Vampire had moved so quickly. Aro looked up at my face briefly in surprise before he looked back down again to where we were joined.

"Interesting, simply an interesting turn of events young-" he paused.

"Edward. I am a member of Carlisle's Coven. He spoke of you through the years,"

"Ah yes dear sweet _deluded_ Carlisle, and how is he my old friend?"

"Well I'm sure,"

"And what exactly is it that I can do for you... _Edward?_" Aro's smirk reached up to his eyes when he spoke.

"I think you know what it is that I want," Aro smiled lightly at me before releasing my hand to turn around.

Facing the other two members of the Volturi, a questioning glance was exchanged between Aro and Marcus. Marcus straightened as Aro continued his inquisition.

"Refresh my memory. And please, enlighten the other members of the court young _Edward_."

I knew at this point he was trying to toy with me, but I couldn't figure out why. Although I could read Aro's thought's he made them almost dizzying, as if he were purposely trying to keep something from me.

The room went silent with anticipation. After taking in my surroundings and the people in it one last time, I began to recount the last three and a half years of my life.

**(~~~~)**

"It's just too painful," I continued.

"And what would the good doctor think of your decision? Do you think he would be pleased or displeased with me granting his _son_... release?"

"This isn't Carlisle's decision to make. This is not his pain that I carry, it is mine, and it is unbearable," Aro closed his eyes and bowed his head slightly with his hands pressed together against his lips in prayer style.

"Ah yes, I can see that you struggle with it, but I'm curious, what about this _Bella?_"her name slithered off his tongue like a snake.

The mere mention of her name pierces me deep like a knife and I grimace to myself as I am forced to relive the last image I have of her burned into my memory.

"What about her? - I asked bewildered- "It's obvious that I killed her,"

Aro again smiled quite smugly to himself, he appeared to take great pleasure in turning the blade around in his victims before pulling it out.

"Well you say you left her bleeding and alone, do you in fact know that she died?"

"She was dying, she wouldn't have made it. She had thirty minutes left at best,"

"So you're sure? You disposed of the body yourself?" he asked quickly before turning to face his comrades.

Marcus seemed to tense after another brief glace between himself and Aro again. I couldn't read his thoughts well either, his mind kept reeling round and round, it seemed as though the Royals now knew enough to guard their thoughts around me.

"No, I didn't but-" Aro cut me off before I could finish.

"Oh, so you attacked her – _the love of your life_- and just left her? And who said romance was dead?"

Aro snorted at his own joke, the others in the room followed suit with their own laughs and cackles. I could feel my temper beginning to flare as a low growl began to rise in my chest. How dare he stand there and make light of such an agonizing part of our lives, he didn't know her or me at all. He didn't know us.

"Really Edward, all this" - _he motioned around the room_ - "For some piddlely little _human_?" he shook his he as he began to _tsk_ at me before turning around to face the elders again.

"So what do you think Caius? Do we _enlighten_ Mr. Cullen here? Give him the salvation he so seeks?"

"As far as I'm concerned he should have been dealt with the moment he exposed himself to the mortal. He broke a sacred law, they all did,"

"So I take it then your vote is _yes_?"

"Get on with it." Caius waved his hand at me impassively.

Aro turned his attention then to Marcus, and asked him the same question.

"Marcus my dear brother, what do you make of this situation? What fate do you think young Edward should meet?"

Marcus shifted his weight in his chair and leaned forward towards us.

"Aro, you know what you _want_ to do. You've already decided. The question isn't what should you do, it's what will you do now? "

It was clearly evident by the look on Aro's face that Marcus's answer displeased him immensely.

"Well Edward my boy, it seems like _most_ agree that you _should_ find judgement here tonight, but what about that gift of yours? Such a tragic waste to have such an outstanding talent just to throw it all away, don't you think?" he waited for me to respond.

"My entire existence has been nothing. Empty, cold, barren, damned. And this _gift _asyou so call it, has only made it that much more miserable,"

"So you are sure, this is what you want?" He brought his finger back up to his mouth and turned around sharply on his heel to ponder the situation after I nodded in agreement.

"Hmm... I wonder-" _he paused_- "I wonder what this _Bella _would think of you ending your own life. Would she seek mercy or condemnation for your sins?"

I looked at him my mouth agape, I had not expected this to turn into the game that it had.

"Well how about one more perspective? Hmm, maybe a woman's point of view would be invaluable for such an occasion, what do you think?" he held his hand palm side up to me in a questioning gesture of agreement. I only could stare and think that Michael met a far less painful fate after all.

"Yes?"- _He waited momentarily for my answer before carrying on_- "Well no bother, I think we can find someone here to _enlighten_ us. But whom..."

Aro held his finger to his temple as if he were in deep thought while making a full circle around the room before finally coming to rest beside a woman leaning against the pillar behind Marcus that I had not noticed before.

Her back was facing the rest of us and when his eyes fell on her she seemed to tense. She had long wavy chestnut brown coloured hair, and wore a full length black gown with a deep cut back line.

"Ah yes, the newest addition to our Coven might not be as _jaded_! So what should we do here with _poor heartbroken_ Edward here? What ending would you seek out if _you_ were in this story… _Isabella_?"

It felt as though every cell in my body was just twisted and pulled apart. Surely this was just another part of his mind – fuckery, but it wasn't.

"Should we end his... _pain_?" Aro asked with the greatest of grins.

He looked like the cat that had swallowed the canary.

I stared at her back waiting for her response. Everyone in the room held their breath in anticipation while we watched her slowly turn her head to look over her right shoulder. Her face was still partially concealed by the shadows from the other pillars that stood close by; she was stunning whom ever she was. She looked faintly familiar from this angle, but I couldn't quite place where I would have seen her before.

Slowly she turned her body around to face me completely, and when I finally made eye contact with her I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I couldn't hear or see anyone else except her; it was as though the rest of the world just floated away.

Although the woman before me had a face I hadn't yet seen before, it was still a face I knew all to well. It was the face that had run ramped in my dreams and haunted my nightmares for two long years.

I fell to my knees when she materialized before me; she was close enough now that I could touch her.

"Oh my God"- _I whispered _- "Bella."

I blinked several times, expecting for her to vanish as quickly as she had appeared.I thought for a moment that I had died a much quicker death then I deserved.

Bella stared down into my eyes with a look I had never seen on her face before and a chill rain down my spine when my brain registered what emotion it was.

"Pain..."- _she stared at me coldly_- "YOU KNOW **NOTHING** OF PAIN!"

Bella brought her right hand down across the left side of my face quicker then I could move. Before the splintering of my cheek from that blow stopped, she brought her left hand down twice as hard and as fast as she could against my right.

Had I been human it would have been the equivalent of being beaten with a baseball bat by Albert Pujols, twice.

I stared up – _incredulously_ - into her flame red eyes. I knew then that this was _not_ in fact heaven, this was hell.

I remained knelt on the floor staring up at Bella with my mouth literally hung open, my eyes stung as if hot salty tears were about to escape. Everyone's thoughts around me swirled with speculation and astonishment. It was as if everyone saw the last piece of the puzzle finally put into place.

"Excellent!" Aro exclaimed cheerfully, "For a moment I wasn't sure how this would play out," Aro had that shit-eating grin on his face again he wore far too often for my liking.

"Edward, meet Isabella. Isabella, meet Edward," _he was beside himself with satisfaction_ - "Hmm, now where were we? Ah yes, Isabella was deciding your fate, Isabella please continue," Aro gestured at the space in between her and I praying silently that she would finish me off.

"Bella please," I pleaded with her. I was hoping to have a chance to explain, to apologize, and to beg for her forgiveness.

"Bella please-" - She spat out with such disgust - "_Bella please_? You're kidding right? Or are you just insane? You really are asking ME for _mercy_ aren't you? What kind of mercy did you show my _weaker_ human self you GOD DAMN SON OF A BITCH?"

Bella was enraged, her body rigid and on edge. I had never seen this side of her. I never knew that something so dark, so dangerous could be lying so close beneath her surface.

"I didn't know- I never thought- I am so sorry," my voice cracked with each word as I tried to convey to her my remorse, but I was pretty sure that no matter what I did or said it would not make up for all the pain I had caused her.

"So Isabella, have you decided yet?" Aro continued his attempts at controlling the situation, and more importantly her. He kept trying to push her limits, to see how far he could get her to strengthen her talent before she could use them of her own accord.

_Bella had a talent? _I caught enough glimpses in Aro's mind to see her training. The Volturi saw an incredible gift when she came to them and they quickly refused her a pardon_. _

I could see the desperation in Aro's mind when he conferred with the others about his suspicions surrounding the nature of her talent. She would become one of the most powerful Vampires they had seen in all their days, and Aro would do anything in his power to keep her here with him.

Aro's thoughts were interrupted when Bella answered a simple "Yes."

Bella stalked towards me with wild red eyes. It wasn't lost on me what that meant, what she had done, had been doing in her short time as a Vampire.

"I'd like to say that this is going to hurt me more then it hurts you Edward... but it won't."

Bella wore a small satisfied smile on her face before she grabbed me by the throat and pulled me from up off of the floor. She was strong. Between her newborn strength and her diet she was much stronger then me, and could easily hold me out in front of her like a rag doll.

Bella began to slowly tighten her hold around my neck making it very apparent that she was going to drag this out as long as she could. It wasn't long before her grip began to get uncomfortable as she gradually increased the pressure of her hold.

Several things happened quickly all at once. One being that it felt as though my head was going to literally pop off. I could feel my neck beginning to splinter underneath her crushing hold. Second, everyone in the room had a million racing thoughts barrelling around their minds. Most of them were cheering her on enjoying the show, no one more so then Aro. Felix was a close second, his reasons being more on the _let's eliminate all romantic competition_ then wanting control of her obvious talents. He wanted a mate and would do anything he could to secure his spot beside her.

Now not many, but a few others felt a hesitation regarding her choice. Marcus was on edge and stood to stop her as soon as his mind became filled with images of us together. Images of things we had not yet experienced, but before he could object someone else did.

"STOP!" Alice shrieked from behind us. She had just burst through the door taking in the scene that had unfolded before her.

"Stop, please-" Alice's plea was cut short when she immediately recognized the person who was assaulting her brother.

"Bella?" Alice's whispered completely horrified.

Bella froze in place while still keeping a firm grip on my neck. She tilted her head to look past me taking in Alice's stunned frame before refocusing her attention on me.

"Hello Alice," she spoke through clenched teeth.

Jasper stepped out from behind Alice's tiny shocked frame, looked at Bella and then said in a small sad voice "Hello Bella," her body tensed momentarily along with her grasp when their eyes met.

But before storming out of the room, Bella threw me at their feet with such force that the marble floor beneath me shattered into pieces.

**

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**A/N:**

So what did you think of Chapter 17? I've been chewing it to pieces for over 2 weeks now.

So were you shocked? Saw it coming a mile away? What do you think her gift is? Bella's missing year will be explained in the next chapter.

I'm thinking that seventeen reviews for Chapter 17 might equal a sneak peak into Chapter 18.

I have some exciting news, Project Team Beta is working with me to clean up Scorned, so as I continue to work on the new chapter's the older ones will get tidied up too, but don't worry- the story line will stay the same. I'll just hopefully learn the proper usage of a **, **and a **; **

**Oh and shout out to Kimmydonn one of my Beta's from PTB. Head on over and read her fic **"**The Banana" here on if you're looking for a super-duper sour lemon!**

**;)**


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